As the final hooter blew in Gifu Prefectural Green Stadium, India men’s hockey team started celebrating after winning the Asian Games gold defeating Malaysia 5-1. The celebration had mixed hues of triumph and relief.

Triumph because the gold medal from last edition was defended and an Olympic berth for 2028 was secured; relief because the win salvaged some pride in an otherwise disappointing year. The gold was historic in the sense this is the first time the Indian men’s hockey team have defended their gold medal in the Asian Games.

In the final against Malaysia, it was a near flawless performance with the Indian forward-line scoring five goals past Malaysia. The 14th-minute field goal from Shello Silverius being the only blip. Skipper Harmanpreet Singh opened the scoring in the 11th minute with his impeccable flick that breached the Malaysian defence but Shello restored the parity in the 14th minute as Indian defence switched off for a moment. Jugraj Singh made it 2-1 in the 23rd minute with another thunderous drag-flick and India went into the halftime with a 2-1 lead.

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India’s captain Harmanpreet Singh, centre, celebrates with Manpreet Singh, left, and Dilpreet Singh after scoring a goal during the men’s final hockey match between India and Malaysia, at the ongoing 20th Asian Games, in Kakamigahara, Japan, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026. (PTI10_03_2026_000437B) *** Local Caption ***

India penetrated deep inside the Malaysian defence multiple times in the third quarter but the only goal came when Hardik Singh wrongfooted goalkeeper Mat Zalmi to score the penalty stroke, which was awarded after a deflection from Mandeep Singh hit the Malaysian defender on the face.

The Indian team was relentless in the last quarter with seven penalty corners but India converted only one after Harmanpreet scored in the 57th minute, the last nail in the coffin for the Malaysian hopes.

Youngster Shilanand Lakra had already given India a big cushion with a well taken field goal in the 54th minute. There is nothing much to write about the overall campaign apart from the fact that it was the only way for India to mask the disappointment at the World Cup earlier this year and the poor show in the FIH Pro League.

At the Asian Games, India was troubled in just one game, which was against Pakistan. The arch-rivals produced a thrilling match after ages.

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Going into the shell

The match just exposed the long-sitting problems in the Indian defence. The Indian defence goes into shell the moment the opposition starts attacking with intensity. Against Pakistan, India were leading 3-0 but went down to 3-3 and constantly lost shape in the fourth quarter before a late strike from Abhishek saved the day.

A team that was deemed fittest at one point of time now struggles to catch breath at times in the fourth quarter. It was not the case against Malaysia today, but it is there every time the opposition starts attacking in the last quarter.

Coach Craig Fulton’s mantra is to defend to win. But the team is winning right now but are not able to defend conceding to the likes of Indonesia and Sri Lanka.

Field goals paucity

If you look at the statistics from the tournament, India scored 58 goals from seven games. The breakup of the goals read 34 field goals, 20 penalty corners, and four penalty strokes.

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On paper, the stay looks really good but in reality, India scored those 30 field goals against oppositions like Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. Only four field goals came against Pakistan, Malaysia and Japan. India had to rely on penalty corners once a quality defence came up against them.

Out of 47 goals against Indonesia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Korea, India scored overwhelmingly 30 field goals and only 17 penalty corners and strokes. But against Pakistan, Malaysia, and Japan, India scored seven penalty corners and strokes and just four field goals.

India needs to find more field goals or more ways to break opposition’s defence when things start getting tough instead of relying just on Harmanpreet or Jugraj to score a penalty corner.

All is not lost on the team though. With 2028 Olympics qualification done, the Indian team and coach Fulton have a lot of time on their hands to go back to the drawing board and fix things if they want to continue the Olympic medal winning streak at Los Angeles.

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Nevertheless, the gold had many meanings today, for the Indian team it meant salvaging a poor year overall.