Tensions Boil Over in India vs Pakistan at ACT 2024; Players From Both Teams Butt Heads After Rash Tackle on Jugraj Singh

When it’s India vs Pakistan, expect tensions to flare up. That is exactly what transpired today in the Asian Champions Trophy clash between the arch-rivals, as both teams got into a heated scuffle after Pakistan’s Ashraf Rana clattered into India’s Jugraj Singh in the final quarter of their encounter.

Defending champions India continued their unbeaten run in the tournament and defeated arch-rivals Pakistan 2-1 to enter the semifinal of the Asian Champions Trophy on Saturday.

It was India’s fifth consecutive win in the six-team round-robin competition.

Pakistan took the lead through Ahmad Nadeem (8th minute) before Harmanpreet Singh (13th, 19th) converted two penalty corners to hand India the win.

With 10 minutes to go and all the pride to play for, both teams were going at each other, maintaining intense pressure as Pakistan tried to eke their way into a draw.

This was when Arshad Rana let his frustration get the better of him.

Pushing for an equalizer, Rana rammed his way through Jugraj Singh inside India’s circle. This didn’t sit well with skipper Harmapreet Singh and co. who instantly went up to the Pakistan player to give him a piece of their mind, before the umpires and the rest of the Pakistan team came in to intervene and diffuse the tension.

A review was then called by the umpires, and upon a check, it was decided that Rana would receive a yellow card for his rash tackle, leaving Pakistan with just 10 men to play with for the remainder of the 10 minutes.

India tried to capitalise on the same, as they pushed hard to build on their slender lead. But, nothing came out of the same, as the Indians clinched the nail-biter of a win.

India have enjoyed an upper-hand over Pakistan. Before today’s clash, at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year, India thrashed Pakistan 10-2. A few months before that, the Indians beat Pakistan 4-0 when the ACT was held in Chennai. At the Asia Cup in Jakarta in 2022, a relatively young Indian side held Pakistan to a 1-1 draw while at the 2021 ACT in Dhaka, India won 4-3 to clinch the bronze medal.

But no worries for either team now, as before this match both India and Pakistan had already qualified for the semifinals, which are scheduled to take place on September 16.