Chennai: Defending champions India mauled minnows Thailand 16-0 in their last inconsequential pool B encounter of the seventh BSNL men’s Asia Cup hockey tournament here Thursday.

The hosts finished with 15 points with five victories in as many matches.

Drag flicker Raghunath converted six of the 11 penalty corners, including five in a row, while Prabhjot Singh (3), Rajpal Singh (3), were other main scorers for the holders. Tushar Khandeker (2), S V Sunil and Gurbaj Singh (1 each) also struck.

The hosts were leading with 10-0 at the break.

India next play Japan in the semi-final on Saturday while Korea will clash with Malaysia, who topped pool A with 10 points.

Korea and Japan scored thumping 8-0 victories in their last league matches to set up semis clashes with Malaysia and India, respectively. (PTI)