Arjun stars for PNB

Arjun shot home twice to help Punjab National Bank (PNB) XI record a narrow 3-2 win over Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) XI in a Pool ‘B’ match of the ONGC Nehru hockey tournament at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium here on Saturday.

Arjun initiated the scoring with a seventh minute strike and sealed the fate of the match with a 49th minute winner. Jatinder, who converted a 9th minute penalty corner, was the other scorer for the winning team.

Akashdeep Singh (25th) and drag-flicker Diwakar Ram (34th) led ONGC’s fight.

Air India blanked Namdhari XI 3-0 in a Pool ‘A’ contest. Birender Lakra found the target in the 28th minute and S. Vinay converted a short corner moments before the break to put Air India ahead at the breather. Captain Sameer Dad completed the tally in the 61st minute.

The results: Pool A:Air India 3 (Birender Lakra, S. Vinay, Sameer Dad) bt Namdhari XI 0; Pool B: PNB XI 3 (Arjun-2, Jatinder) bt ONGC XI 2 (Akashdeep Singh, Diwakar Ram).