Asian Hockey Champions Trophy: Hosts China Stun Pakistan To Enter Maiden Final

In a mega upset, China stunned Pakistan 2-0 (1-1) in the shootout to enter the final of the Asian Champions Trophy at the Moqi Hockey Training Base in Hulunbuir, China. This will be the first time in the history of the tournament that the Chinese national team has made it to the title round while the second-highest number of title winners Pakistan will play for the bronze medal against the loser of the second semifinal between India and Korea. The Chinese goalkeeper Caiyu Wang was outstanding in his efforts to keep a clean slate in the shootout while Benhai Chen and Chanliang Lin scored for China. Earlier in the match, Yuanlin Lu had given China an early 1-0 lead in the 18th minute.

The first semifinal of the day truly lived up to its billing with China posing a mega threat to Pakistan's hopes of making the final right from the start. They were gritty in their pursuit, dominated the ball possession and created early chances. China were buoyed by the unprecedented support from the home crowd, who turned up in large numbers as it was a government holiday on Monday for the Mooncake Festival which marks the post-autumn harvest celebrations across China.

After a 0-0 stalemate in the opening quarter, China scored in the 18th minute through Yuanlin Lu's powerful dragflick to convert from the PC. The 1-0 lead for China put Pakistan on the backfoot. China also came up with brilliant defending in the second quarter to stop Pakistan from scoring a PC. They had created as many as five PCs this quarter but could not breach the Chinese defence.

Ahead of the start of the match, China Head Coach Jin Seung Yoo, who was a former player for Korea, said, "It's an important game for us and we are totally charged up. This is the first time