South Korea beat Pakistan in 2026 Men's Junior Asia Cup semi-final

HULUNBUIR: Choi Dohyeon scored a brace to help South Korea inflict a thumping 4-1 defeat on Pakistan in the second semi-final of the 2026 Men's Junior Asia Cup here at the Moqi Training Base on Friday.

The resounding victory propelled South Korea into the final, where they will lock horns with India, who earlier defeated Malaysia 3-1 in the first semi-final.

On the contrary, the outcome of the recently concluded fixture knocked Pakistan out of the 2026 Men's Junior Asia Cup title race. The Green Shirts will now take on Malaysia in the bronze medal match, scheduled to be played at the same venue on Sunday.

The second semi-final got off to a quiet start as neither team could net the opener in the first quarter. South Korea eventually broke the deadlock six minutes into the second quarter when Seowon Park scored a field goal to put them ahead.

Minhyeok Lee doubled their lead just five minutes later by successfully converting a penalty corner, but Pakistan managed to pull one back in the dying seconds of the eventful quarter, courtesy of Nadeem Khan, who also converted a penalty corner.

Dohyeon then restored South Korea's two-goal advantage in the 41st minute with a penalty corner strike, which remained intact until the conclusion of the penultimate quarter.

He struck again seven minutes into the final quarter, converting yet another penalty corner, to put South Korea in complete control.

The Green Shirts then made multiple attempts to neutralise South Korea's lead but could not score in the remaining eight minutes and thus succumbed to their first defeat at the 2026 Men's Junior Asia Cup, which ended their hopes of lifting the coveted title.