Asian Games 2023: India's surprise victory against S Korea; enters knock-out round
text_fieldsHangzhou: Indian men's volleyball team on Wednesday stunned last edition silver winner South Korea in a five-set thriller to top the group and reach the knock-out stage of the Asian Games.
Indian won 3-2 (25-27 29-27 25-22 20-25 17-15) in their final Group C match that lasted two hours and 38 minutes.
India, who had beaten Cambodia 3-0 on Tuesday, collected five points to top their group.
Amit Gulia and Ashwal Rai emerged as the star performers for India, helping their side to score several crucial points.
India will either play Chinese Taipei or Mongolia in the next round.
India had won their last medal in the 1986 edition (bronze). In the last edition in Indonesia, the country had finished at the 12th spot.
At last month's Asian Championships held in Iran, India had made the final 12 before going down to China 3-2.
The win means India has now advanced to the pre-quarters where they will face three-time Asian Games bronze medallists -- including at the 2018 edition -- Chinese Taipei who are ranked 43rd in the world.
With inputs from PTI