Goalkeepers Pawan, Mohith shine but India beaten by Belgium 1-0 in Sultan Azlan Shah Cup final
In a rotated senior squad, with an eye on expanding India’s bench strength ahead of a hectic 2026, Craig Fulton picked two goalkeepers, presumably Nos. 3 and 4 in the pecking order post PR Sreejesh’s retirement. And it was Mohith HS and Pawan Malik who emerged as the big positives in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup final in Ipoh, Malaysia, even as India lost 0-1 to Belgium in a tight final. Belgium, with some of their stalwarts in the squad, dominated the attacking stats while India, without a few of their big-name players like Harmanpreet Singh and Manpreet Singh, simply didn’t create enough going forward. It was the European powerhouses who were dictating play in the early stages. India won their first penalty corner in the 10th minute when Sukhjeet Singh cleverly stepped away from a bobbling ball that ended up landing on a defender’s foot. But Jugraj Singh’s effort went wide of the right post. Sanjay’s side would win only two more penalty corners on the night, and on both occasions, the injection wasn’t …
