India share spoils with Korea in opener

Dhaka: Defending champions and Olympic bronzemedallists India were held to a 2-2 draw by a fighting Korea in their opening match of the Hero Asian Champions Trophy men’s hockey tournament in Dhaka, Bangladesh on Tuesday.

India started brightly and scored in the fourth minute through Lalit Upadhyay before vice-captain Harmanpreet Singh converted a penalty corner in the 18th minute to double their lead.

Trailing 0-2, Korea fought back after the change of ends and scored through Jonghyun Jang in the 41st minute and Sunghyun Kim in the 46th minute to stun the favourites and draw level.

The Manpreet Singh-led side also had numerous chances, including penalty corners, but failed to utilise the opportunities as the match ended in a stalemate.

India will next play hosts Bangladesh on Wednesday.