Rourkela, 22 June (Hindustan). Chandigarh will face Madhya Pradesh in the final of the 13th Hockey India Junior Men’s National Championship 2023. In the semi-final matches played on Wednesday, Chandigarh defeated Haryana and Madhya Pradesh entered the final by defeating Hockey Association of Odisha.
In the first semi-final, Chandigarh beat Haryana 3-1. Surinder Singh (6′, 59′) played a key role in Hockey Chandigarh’s victory, scoring two goals. At the same time, Deepak Kumar (12′) scored a goal. On the other hand, Roshan (60′) scored a consolation goal for Hockey Haryana just before the final whistle. Chandigarh has been unbeaten in the tournament so far and will be playing in the final for the third time in a row.
Speaking about their undefeated campaign so far in the tournament, Hockey Chandigarh coach Gurminder Singh said, “The team has played really well so far, and I am very proud of the boys. Our team is very experienced and I am confident That we will win against Hockey Madhya Pradesh in the final.”
In the second semi-final, Hockey Madhya Pradesh defeated Hockey Association of Odisha 12-11 in the penalty shootout. Both the teams were tied 4-4 after regulation time, after which the shoot-out was resorted to. Mohammad Zaid Khan (14′), Ali Ahmed (17′), Mohit Karma (29′) and Zameer Mohammad (39′) scored one goal each for Madhya Pradesh. On the other hand, Deepak Minj (24′), Akash Soreng (31′), Anmol Ekka (39′) and Pratap Toppo (54′) scored one goal each for Odisha.
In the shootout, both the teams scored a total of 23 goals. Hockey Madhya Pradesh scored a total of 12 goals in the shootout. Sundaram Singh Rajawat and Shreyas Dhupe scored three goals each for Madhya Pradesh, while Luv Kumar Kanojia, captain Ankit Pal and Mohammad Zaid Khan scored two goals each in the shootout. Hockey Madhya Pradesh goalkeeper Aman Khan was the hero of the match for his team as he saved a crucial goal from Odisha’s Jasman Munda to seal the win. Hockey Madhya Pradesh is also undefeated in the tournament so far. The teams of Chandigarh and Madhya Pradesh will face each other in the title match tonight at 8.30 pm.
