India v China set for Asian Champions Trophy group match in Jalandhar on October 29

India will face China in their second group-stage match of the Men's Hockey Asian Champions Trophy 2026 at the Olympian Surjit Singh Hockey Stadium in Jalandhar on October 29, with the fixture due to start at 7 pm IST as part of the tournament's round-robin stage.

The Indian team opened their title defence with a dominant victory over Bangladesh on Tuesday, scoring 13 without conceding; Mandeep Singh netted a hat-trick while captain Harmanpreet, Dilpreet and Hardik each scored two goals. India struck first in the second minute of that match and added a final goal in the closing seconds, performances that reinforced their status as five-time winners and two-time defending champions and left them positioned as the outright favourites.

China began the competition with a 4-5 loss to Malaysia after taking an early 2-1 lead. The match swung repeatedly: Malaysia registered three goals inside the opening quarter, and China briefly held the advantage after conceding the first goal.

China trailed 2-3 entering the second quarter, later drew level at 3-3, and then conceded two goals in a two-minute span as Malaysia regained the lead. China recovered to score a third in the final quarter but were unable to add another goal, and Malaysia earned four penalty corners in the final minutes.

India have won each of their last five meetings against China, and Craig Fulton’s side will be mindful of not allowing the sort of momentum shifts China experienced against Malaysia. The Chinese squad is described as young and did not manage to recover from their opening defeat.

The round-robin fixture is scheduled to take place at the Olympian Surjit Singh Hockey Stadium in Jalandhar on October 29 (Thursday) with a 7 pm IST start time, forming part of the group-stage programme of the Men's Hockey Asian Champions Trophy 2026.