India will face Malaysia in the men’s hockey final at the Asian Games 2026 on Saturday, with the defending champions aiming to retain their gold medal.
The match will be played at the Gifu Prefectural Green Stadium, with the winner also securing a direct qualification quota for the LA 2028 Olympics.
India have been unbeaten throughout the tournament. They have also topped the Pool A after recording wins over Indonesia (13-1), Sri Lanka (16-1), Republic of Korea (8-2), Japan (2-0) and Bangladesh (10-0).
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The Harmanpreet Singh-led side was, however, given a tough fight by arch-rivals Pakistan in the semi-final. India had taken a comfortable 3-0 lead before Pakistan fought back to level the score at 3-3.
Abhishek then scored in the final minute to give India a dramatic 4-3 victory and a place in the final.
Captain Harmanpreet Singh has been India’s leading scorer with 10 goals, all from penalty corners. He also scored two goals from penalty corners against Pakistan in the semi-final.
Abhishek and Dilpreet Singh have scored nine goals each in the tournament.
Malaysia also topped their pool unbeaten. They defeated Uzbekistan 7-0, Oman 7-0, Thailand 10-0 and Pakistan 5-4 before beating South Korea 2-1 in the semi-final. Abu Kamal Azrai and Faizal Saari have scored nine goals each for Malaysia.
The final brings together the only two unbeaten teams in the men’s hockey event.
India are four-time Asian Games men’s hockey gold medallists and the reigning champions, having won the gold medal at Hangzhou 2023, China.
Malaysia, meanwhile, have finished runners-up at the 2010 Guangzhou and 2018 Jakarta Asian Games but are still searching for their first gold medal.
The men’s team will now have extra motivation to bring the gold medal home after the women’s team beat China 1-0 on Friday to win the hockey gold medal. It was India’s second women’s hockey gold medal at the Asian Games since the event was introduced.
Venue
The India vs Malaysia men’s hockey final at the Asian Games 2026 will be played at the Gifu Prefectural Green Stadium in Japan.
Date And Time
India’s match against Malaysia is scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. Indian Standard Time on Saturday.
Head-To-Head
India have dominated the fixture in recent years. The two teams have faced each other 127 times, with India winning 89 matches and Malaysia 17. The remaining 21 matches were drawn.
How To Watch Live Telecast?
Fans in India can watch the live telecast of the Gold medal match between India and Malaysia on the Sony Sports Network.
How To Watch Live Streaming?
Fans in India can watch the live streaming of the Gold medal match between India and Malaysia on the SonyLIV app and website.
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