Australia edges India to claim Sultan of Johor Cup 2025
Australia clinched the Sultan of Johor Cup 2025 title with a narrow 2-1 victory over India in the final, played at the Taman Daya Hockey Stadium in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, on Saturday.
Australia finally breaks the hoodoo, after loosing three finals, as it lifts the trophy in the fourth attempt.
The match saw a cagey start, with Australia drawing first blood late in the first quarter. Ian Grobbelaar converted the Aussies’ first penalty corner of the game with just two minutes left in the period.
Trailing after the first break, India came out with renewed vigour in the second quarter. Despite a tournament-long struggle with penalty corner conversions—managing only seven successful flicks out of 47 attempts—India found its breakthrough.
On India’s 48th try, Anmol Ekka unleashed a thunderous flick to level the score just before halftime. The momentum continued for India early in the second half, as it launched several attacks and earned multiple short corners, but failed to convert the pressure into a go-ahead goal.
The third quarter evolved into a defensive battle, with both teams making circle entries but finding no way past two resolute backlines.
The tie-breaking goal came with just two minutes left on the clock. India’s skipper, Rohit, made a crucial error while defending a penalty corner by leaving the line prematurely before the injection. This resulted in a penalty, forcing India to defend the subsequent short corner with only three outfield players.
Grobbelaar capitalised on the advantage, striking again to give Australia the decisive 2-1 lead and secure the gold medal. This final marked a record eighth appearance for India in the Sultan of Johor Cup final, out of 12 total appearances.
Earlier in the day, Great Britain defeated Pakistan 3-2 to claim the bronze medal.
Published on Oct 18, 2025