Air India, Punjab & Sind enter semis of Gold Cup hockey

Bhopal: Air India and Punjab and Sind Bank (PSB) sailed into the semi-finals of the All-India Obaidullah Khan Gold Cup hockey tournament here.

In the first quarter-final, Punjab & Sind defeated ONGC 3-2 while star-studded Air India outclassed Steel Authority of India limited (SAIL) 7-1 in a lop-sided second last eight match. Punjab & Sindh led 2-0 at interval through field goals from skipper Mandeep Singh (12th minute) and Gurvinder Singh Chandi (15th). The bankmen made it 3-0 in the 58th minute when Kulwinder Singh converted a penalty corner. ONGC, however, reduced the margin to 3-2 with field goals from Diwakar Ram and Dharmendra in the 59th and 65th minutes respectively. In the second quarterfinal, Air India led by local lad Sameer Dad scored the first goal in the sixth minute through Virendra Lakra. Air India then pumped in four goals in a span of 10 minutes through man-of-the-match Vikram Pillay (17th, 67th), Yuvraj Walmiki (21st) and Lalit Upadhyay (23rd). V S Vinay and Amir Khan scored the other goals for Air India. Skipper Amardeep Ekka scored the lone goal for SAIL in the 29th minute. PTI