Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited clinch DCB Aga Khan Hockey Cup, 4-1: Hockey Recap
Following a quite one-sided contest, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) emerged victorious over Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) by 4-1 in the finals of the Aga Khan Cup that took place at the Bombay Gymkhana Club in Mumbai, India.
Contrary to expectations, the final battle between the ONGC and BPCL that occurred at the lavish green field did not entertain the spectators much, as it was a one-sided affair. However, the joining of international players after the Azlan Shah debacle
graced the colours of the week-long event.
The final game started with a quite low-striking affair, as the attackers from the two sides did not show urgency in their strategies against each other. Though, the ONGC with a pair of international players displayed impressive game, they failed to
give opponents tough time in the crucial game.
After a slow opening, the BPCL started establishing their feet in the game and scored first goal of the game in the 18th minute of the game. Ravi Pal Singh getting a pass from Hari Prasad struck a powerful shot at the ONGCL
goal, opening the score at 1-0. After the first goal, the Bharat Petroleum sped up their strikes and doubled the tally in the 31st minute of the game. Sher Singh while picking up the ball from Amir Khan tapped it into the goal to increase
further pressure on ONGC squad. The opening half concluded with BPCL hanging onto a lead of 2-0.
Chandi found a couple of chances to bring his team into the score but to no avail. The opposite side further expanded their lead in the hands of Ajay Saroha, who scored off a couple of short corners in the 46th and 63rd minutes
and almost clinched the victory.
The trailing ONGC carried out a number of attacks in the last minutes, but all went in vain except one. Chandi scored the only goal of the day in the 67thminute that could not save them from humiliating defeat. BPCL with final whistle of
the time-completion rode away the field by three goals, 4-1.
Saroha and Ravi Pal Singh were at their best and played vital role in the victory through their brilliant passing. After winning the game, the BPCL was awarded a prize money worth of INR 250,000, while runner-ups received INR 150,000. Ajay Saroha was
honoured with the Man-of-the-Match award while Bikash Toppo was named for Player of the Tournament award.
Apart from these two, Jaswinder Singh was selected as Best goalie, Ravi Pal Singh as best midfielder, Irshad Ali as best defender and Pramod Kumar as best striking players of the tournament.
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