India’s junior men’s hockey team drew 5-5 with Great Britain in their last league match of the Johor Sultan Cup round to remain in contention for a place in the final.

Poovanna CB (7th minute), Amandeep (50), Araijeet Singh Hundal (53) and Sharda Nand Tiwari (56, 58) scored for India while Great Britain scored through Max Anderson (1, 40), Harrison Stone ( 42) and Jami Emas (54, 56).

India ended their league round-robin commitments with eight points from five games and are currently in second place behind Australia who have qualified for the final with 10 points from four games.

Defending champions Great Britain are no longer counted for the final as they have collected just seven points from five matches.

South Africa – also on six points from four games but on goal difference far behind India – can qualify for the final if they beat Australia on Friday night. In this case, India will be out of the game.

England came out of the blocks quicker than India, with Anderson scoring the first goal of the game early on. Minutes later, India also scored, with midfielder Poovanna scoring.

The first quarter, which ran quickly and evenly, ended 1-1.

The second quarter saw both teams continue to play against each other for the game, by not allowing the other to fight their way. The match, which is a repeat of the 2018 and 2019 editions of the final, entered the first half with England and India with a 1-1 draw.

It was India who took aim in the third quarter, when they grabbed a corner in the 32nd minute but failed to convert. Great Britain took the lead five minutes from the end of the quarter when Anderson scored his second goal of the game.

Minutes later, Harrison Stone added another goal for Great Britain as they took control, finishing the third quarter 3-1 up.

India needed a solid final quarter and started on the right foot. Five minutes later, India pulled back when Amandeep scored.

Soon after, the match was back in balance with Araijeet Singh Hundal scoring India’s third goal.

Great Britain, however, struck in the following minutes, with Jami Golden finding the target back-to-back in the 54th and 56th minutes to restore a two-goal lead.

Sharda Nand Tiwari’s corner (56) brought India back into play. Minutes later, Tiwari converted another corner, leveling the score at 5-5. Neither team can find a winner and leave with one point each.

India’s chances of facing off at the top hinge on the results of Malaysia v Japan and Australia v South Africa, both of which will be played on Friday.

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