Sr. Nationals: It will be between Punjab and Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday at Jhansi

Two intense semifinals on the penultimate day of the 15th Senior National Championship saw Madhya Pradesh and Punjab winning their bout and entering the final of the prestigious competition.  Sparse Jhansi crowd witnessed the emerging domestic outfit MP beat fighting Manipur 5-3 with late goals from the losers, while Punjab led by Indian team’s vice-captain Hardik Singh overcame stiff challenge from UP (4-3).

The final will be played on Tuesday

In the first Semi-Final match, Hockey Madhya Pradesh defeated Manipur Hockey 5-3 to seal their spot in the grand finale. Captain Yousuf Affan (5’, 34’) and Ali Ahmad (7’, 15’) scored braces for Hockey Madhya Pradesh, while Mohammad Zaid Khan (49’) also contributed with a goal. Moirangthem Rabichandra Singh (47’), Captain Chinglensana Singh Kangujam (50’) and Laishram Dipu Singh (53’) scored for Manipur Hockey.

In the other Semi-Final match, Hockey Punjab emerged victorious over Uttar Pradesh Hockey with a scoreline of 4-3 in a closely contested game. Jasjit Singh Kular (14’, 40’) registered a brace for Hockey Punjab along with goals from Harjeet Singh (22’) and Jugraj Singh (45’). For Uttar Pradesh Hockey, Sharda Nand Tiwari (41’, 43’) added two goals to his tally and Pawan Rajbhar also recorded a goal to his name, but unfortunately for them, they couldn’t find an equaliser in time.

PUNJAB
Gursahibjit Singh, Varun Kumar, Jarmanpreet Singh, Harjeet Singh, Vikramjit Singh, Pardeep Sing, Hardik Singh, Gurjant Singh, Gurinder Singh, Krishan Pathak, Maninder Singh, Araijeet Singh, Princedeep Singh,Jaskaran Singh, Talwinder Singh, Arshdeep Singh, Jasjit Singh, Jugraj Singh. Coach: Rajinder Singh Jr, Manager: Sanjeev Kumar