Hockey Masters Cup: Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Haryana and Maharashtra reach semis

Chennai, June 24 (IANS) Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu takes on Chandigarh while Odisha take on Maharashtra in the semifinals in the men's category, while Tamil Nadu play Odisha and Hockey Haryana take on neighbours Punjab in the last-four stage in the women's section in the 1st Hockey India Masters Cup 2025 here on Wednesday.

As the tournament reaches its knockout stage, these teams will be hoping to secure their places in the finals in both categories in the inaugural edition of the event.

Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu, Hockey Association of Odisha, Hockey Haryana, and Hockey Punjab won their respective matches in the quarterfinals to move ahead in the competition and face each other in the last-four stage of the women’s category.

In the first quarterfinal match in the women’s category on Tuesday, the Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu defeated Hockey Karnataka 3-1. Chitra (18’), Rasna Suresh Babu (22’), and Saumya (39’) scored for the Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu, whereas Rohini MR (57’) managed to score a consolation goal in the final minutes. With this win, the Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu has secured its position in the semis.

In the second Quarterfinal match, the Hockey Association of Odisha defeated Kerala Hockey 10-0. Sarita Lakra (14’, 32’, 36’, 46’, 50’) stood out to be the top goal scorer after scoring five goals in the match. Pratima Ekka (11’) scored one goal while MINZ Sarita Roshan (23’, 26’, 43’) netted a hat-trick to strengthen their position in the game. Captain Lucela Ekka (8’) also scored one goal to take the total of the goals scored in double digits, convincingly securing their berth in the last four stages.

In the next QF, Hockey Haryana successfully got a step closer to lifting the trophy after entering the semifinals with an 8-0 victory against Hockey Himachal in the women’s category.

Chingshubam Sanggai Ibemhal (2’, 12’, 26’, 33’) managed to score a sum of four goals throughout the first three quarters and took the game away from Hockey Himachal. Nishi Shivendra Singh (4’), Sonika Yadav (8’), Captain Pritam Siwach (27’), and Anchal Verma (54’) also scored one goal each to help their team reach the semis.

In the fourth QF match of the women’s category, Hockey Punjab defeated Hockey Maharashtra 13-0. Captain Amandeep Kaur (2’, 7’, 19’, 20’, 54’) led from the front and stood out to be the goal scorer as she scored five goals in the match. Baljit Kaur Marar (3’, 31’, 44’, 46’) also scored four goals to take the game further away from the opponent. Sania Sharma (23’), Arun Bala (29’), Sangita Minz (37’), and Jaspreet Kaur (58’) also contributed with one goal each to enter the Semi-Finals.

On the other hand, in the third quarterfinal match of the men’s category, Hockey Maharashtra defeated Hockey Karnataka 2-1. Paramesh KS (15’) opened the numbers on the scoreboard in the game for Hockey Karnataka. In response, Captain Dhananjay Mahadik (19) scored an equaliser for Hockey Maharashtra. Also, Sandesh Ganesh More (39) scored a match-winning goal to take his team to the Semi-Finals.

In the last Quarterfinal match of the men’s category, Hockey Chandigarh defeated Hockey Haryana 2-2 (SO 3-1). Vivek Dahiya (29’) and Jitender Kumar (47’) scored one goal each for Hockey Haryana. On the opposite side, Ravinder Singh (43’, 58’) scored a brace to end the game in a draw, by the final whistle. In the shoot-out, goalkeeper Arundeep Sanghotra stood out to be a top performer for Hockey Chandigarh as he saved three out of the four chances. Virender Singh managed to score one goal for Hockey Haryana, whereas Ravinder Singh, Sanjiv Kumar, and Vikram Saini scored for Hockey Chandigarh to register the win.

Line Up for semifinals:

Men’s Category: June 25, 2025

semis1: Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu vs Hockey Chandigarh - 1400 HRS

Semifinal 2: Hockey Association of Odisha vs Hockey Maharashtra - 1600 HRS

Women’s Category: June 26, 2026

Semifinal 1: Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu vs Hockey Association of Odisha - 0600 HRS

Semifinal 2: Hockey Haryana vs Hockey Punjab - 0800 HRS

--IANS

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