India survive Pakistan scare, Abhishek's late strike seal 4-3 win and enter final

KAKAMIGAHARA, Oct 1: Defending champions India survived a scare before Abhishek struck with just 45 seconds remaining to snatch a dramatic 4-3 victory over arch-rivals Pakistan and seal a place in the Asian Games hockey final here on Thursday.

Harmanpreet converted two perfectly executed penalty corners in the 5th and 13th minutes, while Sukhjeet Singh scored a field goal in the 23rd minute. Abhishek scored the winning goal for India from a field play in the final minute of the game.

Pakistan's goals were scored by Abu Mahmood (30th minute), Hannan Shahid (45th) and Waheed Rana (49th).

The defending champions looked set for a comfortable semifinal win after captain Harmanpreet's brace and Sukhjeet Singh's field strike put them firmly in control.

But a stunning second-half collapse allowed Pakistan to claw their way back as they scored three goals and push India to the brink of an embarrassing defeat before Abhishek's late strike rescued the contest. (PTI)