Ranchi February 26:
Punjab defeated Jharkhand 2-0 in a scintillating men's hockey final in the 34th National Games at the Astroturf here.
After surviving a flurry of attacks from the hosts, Ravi Pal and Sarvanjit Singh struck in the 55th and 64th minutes against the run of the play to give Punjab the gold medal, much to the disappointment of a capacity crowd. Ravi Pal latched on a ball deflected from Jharkhand goalkeeper Dinesh Ekka following a penalty corner hit, and flicked into the post from the left side to put Punjab in lead.
Nine minutes later, Sarvanjit got all the time in the world to reverse flick one into the net to consolidate Punjab's position. Jharkhand came close to scoring in the 59th minute when Mathias Minz gave a cross to Inocent Kullu, but the latter failed to make contact.
Punjab defeated Jharkhand 2-0 in a scintillating men's hockey final in the 34th National Games at the Astroturf here.
After surviving a flurry of attacks from the hosts, Ravi Pal and Sarvanjit Singh struck in the 55th and 64th minutes against the run of the play to give Punjab the gold medal, much to the disappointment of a capacity crowd. Ravi Pal latched on a ball deflected from Jharkhand goalkeeper Dinesh Ekka following a penalty corner hit, and flicked into the post from the left side to put Punjab in lead.
Nine minutes later, Sarvanjit got all the time in the world to reverse flick one into the net to consolidate Punjab's position. Jharkhand came close to scoring in the 59th minute when Mathias Minz gave a cross to Inocent Kullu, but the latter failed to make contact.
