IPOH: South Korea played smart hockey to take the Azlan Shah Cup final into a shootout and then a stylish goal from skipper Lee Nam Young saw them lift the title for the third time here on Saturday.
The match ended 1-1, just like the pool stage, but in the end Korea won the shootout 4-2.
Nam Young took the final shootout, and charging in, he lifted the ball over the goalkeeper for the sweet victory.
India took an early lead off Simranjeet Singh in the ninth minute.
Undeterred, Korea never stopped pressing, while also keeping India in check, and they were finally rewarded in the 47th minute when they won a penalty stroke. Jang Jung Hyun almost tore the netting for the equaliser.
Korea won the tournament for the first time in 1996 and shared the gold with India in 2010.
Final placing
1 South Korea, 2 India, 3 Malaysia, 4 Canada, 5 Japan, 6 Poland.
Awards
Fairplay (Raja Ashman Shah Trophy): Japan;
Man-of-the-Final: Jang Jung Hyun (Korea);
Top scorer: Mandeep Singh (India) and Jang Jung Hyun (seven goals each);
Best Goalkeeper: Kim Jae Hyeon (Korea);
Player-of-the-Tournament: Surender Kumar (India).