India loses 1-2 to Australia in the Sultan of Johor Cup final

The Indian junior men's hockey team lost 1-2 to Australia in the Sultan of Johor Cup 2025 final in Johor, Malaysia, on Saturday. India began on a high note, passing the ball short and accurately, which resulted in dominating the initial stages. Their first real opportunity arrived in the fifth minute when Gurjot Singh was presented with a close-range chance following a swift exchange of passes between Araijeet Singh Hundal and Saurabh Anand Kushwaha. Still, Australian goalkeeper Magnus McCausland handled it well.

Gurjot Singh cleverly deflected Aamir Ali's long-range free kick toward the goal in the tenth minute, but McCausland blocked it once more. 

Australia gained their first penalty corner of the match in the 13th minute, and they were converted it by Ian Grobbelaar (13th minute) to make the score 1-0. They earned another penalty corner just before the end of the quarter, but a brilliant performance from Indian goalkeeper Prince Deep Singh kept them at bay.

The Indian team started the second quarter in style, converting two consecutive penalty corners. Anmol Ekka's (17th minute) powerful shot from the left flank of McCausland gave India a 1-1 draw.

The Indian defense held firm against the Australian attack. They earned two more penalty corners just before halftime, but Arijeet's shot failed to give them the lead on both occasions.

A brilliant Indian move began the third quarter. A long pass from Priyabarta Talem found Aamir Ali on the left flank, but his close-range attempt resulted in another penalty corner, which went wide.

Neither team let up in their attempts to score for the remainder of the quarter, and Australia earned three penalty corners themselves. A few minutes before the whistle, Arijeet made a fast and dangerous run, but his shot went wide.

At the start of the final quarter, Ajit Yadav gained possession of the ball in a dangerous area and advanced, but with no support around, his shot went wide. As the match picked up pace, India launched a strong attack. Rohit came close to converting India's eighth penalty corner of the night, but missed the mark. Grobbelaar scored from the penalty corner (59th minute) to give Australia the title.