SportsPosted at: Oct 27 2026 10:37PM


India crush Bangladesh 13-0 in Asian Champions Trophy opener, Mandeep hits hat-trick

Neeraj Bali
Chandigarh, Oct 27 (UNI) Defending champions India launched their Asian Champions Trophy hockey campaign with a commanding 13-0 victory over Bangladesh on Tuesday, underlining their status as title favourites as international hockey returned to Punjab after 17 years.

Mandeep Singh struck a hat-trick, while captain Harmanpreet Singh, Dilpreet Singh and Hardik Singh scored twice each in a one-sided contest at the Olympian Surjit Singh Hockey Stadium.
Amandeep Lakra, Abhishek, Nilakanta Sharma and Jugraj Singh also found the net as India overwhelmed Bangladesh with sustained attacking pressure.
The five-time champions made their intentions clear from the opening minutes, with Harmanpreet scoring in the second minute and Mandeep doubling the lead a minute later.
Mandeep added another goal in the 10th minute before Amandeep Lakra extended India's advantage in the 15th.
Abhishek struck in the 18th minute and Nilakanta Sharma added another in the 26th as the hosts maintained control of possession and repeatedly breached the Bangladesh defence.
India continued their dominance after the interval, with Dilpreet scoring twice in quick succession and Harmanpreet adding his second goal in the 44th minute.
Jugraj Singh joined the scorers in the final quarter before Mandeep completed his hat-trick.
Hardik rounded off the rout with two late goals.
The emphatic victory provided a strong opening statement from a team seeking a record-extending sixth Asian Champions Trophy crown and a third consecutive title.
Speaking ahead of the tournament, Harmanpreet had stressed that India would not allow their favourites' status to undermine their preparations.
"Every team is here to compete and win the tournament. All the teams are strong, and we do not want to take any opponent lightly," the Indian captain said. He had also identified defensive improvement as a priority despite India's formidable attacking strength.
"Defence, that is our priority. We have very skilful forwards who create good opportunities. If we perform well in both defence and attack, we can become a better team," Harmanpreet said at the pre-tournament captains' conference.
India entered the six-team competition after successfully defending their Asian Games gold medal in Japan earlier this month.
Bangladesh joined the tournament after Pakistan withdrew, leaving India, Malaysia, Japan, China and South Korea as the other participating teams.
The tournament is particularly significant for Punjab, which is hosting major international men's hockey competition for the first time since 2009.
India will face China in their next match on October 29, followed by Japan on October 30, Malaysia on November 1 and South Korea on November 2.

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Tags: #India crush Bangladesh 13-0 in Asian Champions Trophy opener# Mandeep hits hat-trick
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Neeraj Bali
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