Delhi quell Bhopal’s challenge

NEW DELHI, June 27: Defending champions Delhi were finally made to sweat in the 29th Junior National hockey championship. The hosts respond...

NEW DELHI, June 27: Defending champions Delhi were finally made to sweat in the 29th Junior National hockey championship. The hosts responded to their first stiff challenge of the tournament with a thrilling 5-2 win against Bhopal which clinched them a semi-final berth.

The other quarter-final between SAIL and BSF was postponed to tomorrow morning because of heavy rains.

Delhi, encountering little resistance in the pool phase were apprehensive nonetheless while squaring up to their aggressive opponents.

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Surely enough, the hosts seemed rattled as Bhopal began on an attacking note. Luckily for Delhi, rains that lashed the Capital in the evening provided some respite not only from the heat but from the pace generated by their opponents.

Play resumed after almost an hour later with Delhi much more prepared to tackle their rival’s firepower. They also forged a few good moves, which came to naught, thanks to Bhopal’s doughty defenders.

Back in the second half with a fresh gameplan Delhi soon had Bhopal on the run. Boosted by two Indian Airlines stars, Virender Singh and Yoginder Rawat, Delhi kept battering the Bhopal citadel, despite a couple of misses.

Delhi struck through Mukesh Kumar in the 42nd minute after Virender and Deepak combined. Fasal Ali equalised a minute later, but Delhi had struck a fine rhythm and regained the lead. Rawat scored after a solo in the 51st minute.

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Virender extended the lead with a spectacular reverse shot in the 56th minute. Bhopal, though, refused to give up and reduced the margin in 61st minute as captain Sameer Dad converted a stroke.

That hardly deterred Delhi’s appetite for more goals as Virender hit the final nail into Bhopal’s coffin the very next minute.

The Bhopal morale was shattered and even their coach left the field in disgust.