Chandigarh boys beat UP, clinch gold

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 20

The Chandigarh boys defeated Uttar Pradesh 2-0 on penalties after the two sides failed to break the deadlock in the regulation time, claiming the gold medal in the U-17 hockey competition on the 11th day of the Keho India Youth Games at Guwahati today.

The two sides were tied 2-2 at the end of the fourth quarter; and Chandigarh, who beat Punjab 3-1 in the semifinals yesterday, managed to score twice in the shootout, while Uttar Pradesh missed all their chances.

Uttar Pradesh took an early lead with centre-back Arun Sahani scoring in the 6th minute of the match. Chandigarh, though, reorganised in time and drew level through a penalty-corner conversion by Deepak Kumar in the 17th minute.

With the two sides locked 1-1 at the end of the first half, the Uttar Pradesh boys upped the ante in the third quarter and after a couple of unsuccessful attempts, the side regained the lead in the 43rd minute. An unmarked Sahani received a pass in the penalty area and tapped the ball into the Chandigarh goal for his second goal.

With the title at stake, the Chandigarh boys came out all guns blazing in the last quarter and scored through Sumit in the 50th minute to push the match into the tie-breaker. After trapping a long pass from skipper Surinder, Sumit made a solo run towards the Uttar Pradesh goal and hit the ball past the UP custodian to help Chandigarh restore parity. Both teams tried hard to score the winner in the remaining 10 minutes, but none succeeded.

In the shootout, Uttar Pradesh won the toss and took the first try at goal. Up against Chandigarh goalie Bikramjit Singh, skipper Chandan Yadav hit the ball wide. Pardeep took the first shot for Chandigarh and he also hit the ball wide. Bikramjit then denied Amir Ali, while Ajay Pal Singh struck for Chandigarh. With the pressure mounting on Uttar Pradesh, Sahani also failed to convert his chance. Ankush, meanwhile, pulled off another goal for

Chandigarh to extend their lead to 2-0.

Uttar Pradesh needed to score with their fourth attempt to stay in the competition, but Mohammed Haris failed to beat an alert Bikramjit.

“I am really happy with the way our team played. We executed our plans brilliantly today. We had lost 2-8 to them (UP) in our Pool A match... In the final it was more about countering their tactics and making sure we were always focused on the task at hand,” said Chandigarh coach Gurminder Singh.

Chandigarh had earlier finished second in Pool A with two wins and a loss.

Director, Sports (UT), Tejdeep Singh, who witnessed the final from the stands, also congratulated the team for their victory.

Punjab win bronze

In the bronze medal match, Punjab defeated Odisha in the shootout after the sides were tied 2-2 at the end of the regulation time.

Ravneet Singh converted a penalty corner in the 15th minute to put Punjab ahead, but Odisha drew level through Paulus Lakra four minutes later.

Odisha then took the lead with Jasman Munda hitting home in the 25th minute. However, Arshdeep Singh helped Punjab restore parity with a last-minute goal. The side then got the better of Odisha in the shootout to claim the bronze medal.

Haryana girls on top

In the girls’ U-17 final, Haryana defeated Jharkhand 2-1 on penalties. Like the boys’ title clash, the match was decided through a shootout after the two sides were locked 2-2 at the end of the fourth and final quarter. Pinki (13th) and Dimple (36th) scored a goal each for Haryana, while Deepika Soreng (35th, 60th) struck a brace for Jharkhand. In the shootout, Haryana converted twice through Dimple and Sakshi Rana, while Jharkhand managed to score only once. Odisha defeated Assam 2-1 to claim the bronze medal.

Tamana bags silver

Mohali’s Tamana Sharma (right) won the silver medal in the girls’ U-17 artistic gymnastics. Tamana trains under coach Sameer Deb (left) at the Punjab Institute of Sports, Sector 78, Mohali.

Aditya lifts bronze

City weightlifter Aditya Narang claimed the bronze medal in the men’s U-21 category on Monday. Competing in the 81kg class, Narang lifted a total of 248kg to finish third. Shaik Lal Basheer (254kg) and G Ravishankra (249kg), both from Andhra Pradesh, won the top-two positions, respectively.