Bangladesh smash Taipei 8-3 in Asia Cup hockey
Sohanur Rahman Sabun and captain Rezaul Karim Babu added a goal apiece in the second fixture for the men in red and green, who had opened their campaign with a 4-1 defeat to Malaysia on Friday.
Mohammad Abdullah, Ashraful Islam, and Rakibul Hasan each netted a brace as Bangladesh comfortably dispatched Chinese Taipei 8-3 in their second Pool B encounter of the Asia Cup in Bihar on Saturday.
Sohanur Rahman Sabun and captain Rezaul Karim Babu added a goal apiece in the second fixture for the men in red and green, who had opened their campaign with a 4-1 defeat to Malaysia on Friday.
Despite heading into the match with a 2-0 head-to-head record against Chinese Taipei, Bangladesh initially struggled to assert their dominance, even after taking an early lead in the fourth minute through Abdullah.
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Tsung-Yu Shih responded with a brace to hand Taipei — who had suffered a 7-0 defeat to Korea in their opener — a surprising lead. Abdullah, however, equalised in the 26th minute to ensure the sides went into the break level.
Bangladesh emerged a different team in the second half, with Ashraful and Rakibul each scoring twice, while Sobuj and Babu chipped in with a goal apiece to give Moshiur Rahman Biplob's men an emphatic 8-2 advantage.
Taipei managed to pull one back in the dying seconds of the match.
The victory ensures that Bangladesh will finish at least third in the group, with their final match against Korea scheduled for Monday.
