Deepika’s brace helps Haryana clinch gold

Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, January 19

Deepika scored a brace as Haryana beat Jharkhand 2-1 in a closely contested final to win the gold medal in the U-17 women’s hockey competition at the 2nd Khelo India Youth Games in Pune on Saturday. 

Both the teams started off on an aggressive note, but it was only in the third quarter that Haryana girls finally managed to break the dead-lock. Deepika struck for the side in the 34th minute to put them 1-0 ahead.

Three minutes later, Deepika found herself in a goal-scoring position again and she did not miss the opportunity to make it 2-0 for Haryana.

Jharkhand tried to make a comeback into the match, but had to settle for the silver medal as they could not surpass the Haryana tally. Prini Kandir scored the solitary goal for the side in the 60th minute of the match. 

Meanwhile, in the bronze-medal playoff, Odisha registered a 3-2 win over Punjab. 

Odisha started the match well as they scored thrice inside the opening quarter to stamp their authority. Sunita Xaxa (4th), Jyoti Chhatri (6th) and Nimabati Singh (13th) scored a goal each for the side.

Punjab found a glimmer of hope at the end of the first quarter as they scored their first goal through Chewang Tamang in the 15th minute. 

Punjab tried to find a second to stay alive in the match, and they were successful in doing so when Simranjeet Kaur struck in the 53rd minute. However, Odisha back-line defended well in the remaining part of the match to help their side seal the match 3-2 and return home with the bronze medal. 

The final match in the U-21 women’s hockey competition will be played tomorrow.