India Break Asia Cup Title Jinx

Ignace Tirkey played the game of his life as Indiathrashed bitter rivals Pakistan 4-2 in a nerve-wracking final to win their firstever Asia Cup title in Kuala Lumpur and a berth in the 2006 World Cup.

With the teams locked 2-2 and the match appearing to beheaded towards extra time with just one minute 27 seconds left on the clock,Tirkey did a Houdini act to score off a solo dribble on receiving a pass fromBaljeet Singh Saini.

The drama was not over as yet as India capped theirsuperb show with another goal by Prabhjot Singh 14 seconds from the hooter.

The victory helped India settle more than one score asthey were defeated by Pakistan by the same margin in the league match earlier inthe tournament. India also avenged their defeat in the bronze medal play-off inthe Champions Trophy last month as well as their 2-0 thrashing in the 1989edition at New Delhi, the last time the arch-rivals met in the final of AsiaCup.

The victory, which put paid to Pakistan's aspirationsto win their fourth Asia Cup title after they won it last in New Delhi, wasspecially sweet for India as had to be content with the runners-up title on fouroccasions earlier.

Playing their first major tournament without drag flick ace Jugraj Singh, Indiaopened their account in the sixth minute when Kanwalpreet Singh converted theirfirst penalty corner. For Pakistan, penalty corner expert Sohail Abbas scoredboth the goals in the first half in the 7th and 12th minutes.

Undoubtedly, it was India who dominated theircontinental rivals for the greater part of the game, dishing out an excellentfare and outplaying Pakistan constantly.

Tirkey, declared the man-of-the-match, played like aman possessed, dribbling with great skill and accuracy. His set pieces andtackling left rival defenders in a daze and they struggled to keep up with hispace, making mistakes in collecting the ball and indulging in wayward passes.

There was a collective gasp from the spectators asTirkey scored India's third goal to seal the fate of Pakistan as there were lessthan two minutes left on the clock.

There was some consolation for Pakistan though as theyearned the 'Fairplay Award' and their highest goal scorer ever Sohail Abbasbeing named 'Player-of-the-Tournament'.

India's upcoming forward Sandeep Michael was adjudgedthe 'Most Promising Player' of the tournament which saw India lose just one oftheir matches in what proved to be a superb outing for the Asian Games silvermedallists.

There was never a dull moment in the first half as theteams went all out right from the outset with India earning their first penaltycorner in the fifth minute. A bad clearance by the Pakistani defender saw Indiaget another corner immediately after and Kanwalpreet made no mistake with hisdrag flick to give India a 1-0 lead.

But even before the Indian players finished celebrating their breakthrough,Pakistan equalised in the very next minute with ace defender Abbas unleashinghis deadly drag flick to convert Pakistan's first penalty corner (1-1).

Within five minutes of the goal, Pakistan surged aheadto a 2-1 lead with Abbas once again making no mistake with his trademark flickin the 12th minute.

The Indians regrouped and played some intelligenthockey to dispossess their rivals. Their tackles were impressive and the effortsbore fruit when forward Gagan Ajit Singh deflected the ball in to even scores at2-2.

India's forward line appeared to have learnt from themistakes commited in the previous matches and though Dhanraj Pillay displayed anordinary game, they did not let go of the chances that came their way.

Pillay and Bimal Lakra combined with Prabhjot Singh tobuild some excellent moves, dodging the rival defenders with great back andsquare passes.

But a good opportunity to score was lost when GaganAjit fumbled after a very good pass from Lakra, playing an outstanding game, andshot flippantly to let the ball go over the goalpost.

The tension and thrill that goes with everyIndia-Pakistan match was very much on show with green cards being shown toMohammad Saqlain and Tirkey and the umpires having a tough time convincing theplayers of their decisions.

PTI