Men's Hockey: Abhishek scores brace to guide India to 4-2 win against Japan
Hangzhou (PTI): Young striker Abhishek fired two goals as India beat defending champions Japan 4-2 to register their third consecutive victory and take a giant step towards semi-final of the men's hockey competition at the Asian Games here on Thursday.
Abhishek (13th, 48th minutes) scored two field goals, while Mandeep Singh (24th) and Amit Rohidas (34th) were the other scorers for India.
Japan fought back in the final five minutes of the fourth and final quarter and scored two quick goals through Genki Mitani (57th) and Ryosei Kato (60) to reduce the margin of defeat.
India will play arch-rivals Pakistan in their next Pool A match on Saturday.
World no.3 Indian team dominated the proceedings for major part of the match and controlled the ball possession, while Japan showed sparks in patches.
After two easy wins, the confident Indians started brightly and secured their first penalty corner in the fifth minute but skipper Harmanpreet Singh's flick went wide.
India conceded their first penalty corner of the tournament in the 12th minute but the Japanese failed to utilise the chance as goalkeeper Krishan Bahadur Pathak saved Shota Yamada's try.
India secured another penalty corner soon but again the result was the same.
But an opportunistic Abhishek gave India the lead a minute later, scoring with a reverse stick after receiving an assist from Hardik Singh.
India earned another penalty corner but the Japanese defended bravely.
Seconds from the first quarter, Lalit Upadhyay's timely deflection from Jarmanpreet Singh's cross was saved by Japanese goalkeeper Takshi Yoshikawa.
India doubled their lead in the 24th minute through Mandeep, who dived full length to deflect in Nilkanta's pass.
After the change of ends, India secured their fourth penalty corner but Sanjay's flick was saved by Yoshikawa.
India secured back-to-back penalty corners soon, the second of which was converted by Rohidas with with a powerful drag-flick to the top right corner of Japan goal.
India looked threatening and continued to press hard on the Japanese defence in search of more goals as the third quarter ended.
Three minutes into the final quarter, India made the scoreline 4-0 when Abhishek combined well with Mandeep to score his second goal of the day.
But the Japanese didn't bow down without a fight and came back strongly, scoring two quick goals in the last five minutes of the game.
The Japanese secured three penalty corners in a span of three minutes and managed to find the net from the third one through a fine variation goal from Mitani.
Japan pulled another back just at the stroke of the final hooter from a counter attack through Kato.
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UP Cong holds statewide protest seeking probe into FIR against Swami Avimukteshwaranand
Lucknow (PTI): The Uttar Pradesh Congress on Wednesday staged a statewide protest demanding a fair and transparent inquiry into the FIR lodged against Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati and those who filed the complaint against him.
In a statement issued here, the party said memorandums addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi were submitted through district magistrates in all districts of the state.
Uttar Pradesh Congress spokesperson Manish Hindvi told PTI that the memorandums were handed over through the district administration in all 75 districts.
In the memorandum, the party alleged that Saraswati and his disciples were "unnecessarily harassed and humiliated" by police on the occasion of Amavasya and were prevented from taking a ritual bath (at the Magh Mela). It further alleged that some disciples were manhandled and taken to a police station.
The memorandum also claimed that an FIR was later registered against Saraswati, his disciple Swami Mukundanand Brahmachari and several unidentified persons in a sexual harassment case. It termed the case a "conspiracy" aimed at tarnishing the seer's reputation.
Citing Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution, the memorandum stated that these provisions guarantee religious freedom and the right of religious denominations to manage their own affairs.
It described the position of shankaracharya held by Saraswati as "one of the highest spiritual posts in Sanatan tradition" and alleged that the entire episode appeared to have been "orchestrated in a planned manner".
"We request that the background of the persons who got the FIR registered be investigated in a transparent manner by a retired high court judge and strict action be taken against them," the memorandum said.
It also sought a "fair and transparent probe" into the allegations levelled against Saraswati so that the truth could be established.
Earlier, Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai had told reporters in Varanasi after meeting Saraswati that the party stood firmly with him.
The Congress said it would continue to press for an impartial inquiry into the entire episode.
On February 21, an FIR was lodged in Prayagraj against Saraswati and his disciple Mukundanand Brahmachari on charges of sexually abusing two persons, including a minor, over the past year at a gurukul and religious congregations, including the recently concluded Magh Mela.
Days after he was booked, Saraswati had said on Monday that he would not oppose his arrest and asserted that the "fabricated story" would be exposed sooner or later.
At a press conference on Wednesday, Saraswati alleged that criminals rule in Uttar Pradesh, level allegations and influence investigations, as he denied having any contact with the two persons for whose alleged sexual abuse he has been booked.
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