IPOH: India regained the Azlan Shah hockey title after a 13-year gap, defeating hosts Malaysia 3-1 in the finals of the five-nation tournament here today.
Arjun Halappa (8th minute), Prabhjot Singh (20th) and Shivender Singh (41st) sounded the board for India through neatly worked out field goals, while Misron (11th) reduced the margin for the hosts.
Earlier in the day, New Zealand pipped Pakistan 2-1 in a play-off match to secure the third spot at the Azlan Shah Stadium.
High on confidence after their 3-0 win against Malaysia during the round-robin stage, India, who last won the tournament in 1995, started making forays into the rival half from the word go.
The Indian forwards' efforts bore fruit as early as in the eighth minute of the match when Arjun scored a field goal to give India the lead.
The lead was, however, shortlived as Misron drew parity, much to the delight of the home crowd, in 11th minute through a field goal.