Jan 02: Hyderabad Sultans kept their semi-final chances afloat after registering a convincing 5-3 victory over Chennai Veerans in the 4th Premier Hockey League played at the Sector 42 Hockey Stadium here on Tuesday.
Sultans pumped in three goals in the span of 15 minutes in the very electrifying first quarter to seal their victory against their opponents, but spirited Veerans pulled back two goals through drag-flick expert Raghunath to claw back into the match. Veerans finished their engagements at the bottom of the table with one point.
Sultans took the lead in the fifth minute through Bikas Toppo, two minutes later Sultans’ Diwakar Ram made it 2-0. In the 14th minute, Sardara Singh slotted home his team’s third goal off a sweltering shot from Pakistan’s Adnan Maqsood.
Veerans replied strongly with its forwards Adam Sinclair, Mahendra Singh and Sanawar Ali launched flurry of attacks into the rivals defence. Their efforts finally paid off as Raghunath scored in the 16th minute to reduce the margin.
Six minutes later, Raghunath found the target again as Veerans made it 3-2, but Sultans continued their aggressive style of play and scored two more goals in the space of five minutes.
Diwakar Ram scored in the 39th minute, while man of the match Sardara scored his second goal off a solo effort in the 44th minute.
Veerans didn’t lack any spirit as they again strike one back in the 64th minute through Dutchman Joost van Den but it was too late to stage a comeback into the match.
With this defeat the Chennai Veerans will be relegated from the Premier Division and they are likely to play the qualifying tournament next year to make the grade again.
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