India and Pakistan to Meet in Men’s Jr Asia Cup Hockey
India and Pakistan will face each other in a Pool-A match of the 10-team Men’s Junior Asia Cup 2023 in Salalah, Oman on May 27. This much-awaited encounter is part of the tournament, which will take place from May 23 to June 1. The top young Asian men’s hockey teams will compete in the event for the title and the three spots up for grabs for the upcoming FIH Junior Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 to be played in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The ten participating teams have been split into two pools. Pool A comprises Chinese Taipei, India, Japan, Pakistan, and Thailand. In Pool B, hosts Oman will be joined by Bangladesh, Korea, Malaysia, and Uzbekistan. Each team in the pool stage will play the other four teams in their pool once.
The top two teams in both pools will qualify for the semifinals, while the teams in third and fourth positions will compete for the 5-8 place classification. The teams finishing in fifth place in both pools will go head-to-head to avoid finishing in tenth place. The losing semifinalists will play in the bronze medal match, with the two finalists and the bronze medalists qualifying for the FIH Junior Hockey World Cup 2023.
Malaysia has already qualified for the World Cup as hosts. If Malaysia enters the semifinals of the Junior Asia Cup, all the other three teams making it to the last-four stage will gain entry into the World Cup as well. The FIH Junior Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 will be played in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from December 5-16, 2023.
In Salalah, the Indian junior men’s team will start its campaign against Chinese Taipei on May 24 and will take on Japan on the next day. After a day of rest, India will clash with Pakistan on May 27 and then wrap up their campaign in Pool A with a match against Thailand on May 28.
