Railways enters semifinals with a hard-fought win over BPCL

Indian Railways defeats BPCL in a thrilling match to secure a spot in the semifinals of the MCC-Murugappa Gold Cup.

: Defending champion Indian Railways shut BPCL out of the 95th MCC-Murugappa Gold Cup All-India hockey tournament here on Wednesday, in a match full of twists and turns.

With the 5-4 win over the former champion, Railways qualified for the knock-out (semifinals) with a match to spare. In its last Pool-A match on Thursday, Railways will take on Tamil Nadu. From Pool-A, Army is the other team that has made it to the last four, after it registered a 2-1 victory over Maharashtra.

There was hardly a dull moment in the tie between Railways and BPCL.

Leading 4-2 going into the fourth quarter, Railways held the edge. But BPCL wouldn’t go down without a fight as it forced three consecutive consecutive penalty corners at the beginning of the quarter. Railways, however, held firm.

BPCL continued to attack with gusto and equalised in a matter of three minutes through a brace from former International Devender Walmiki. Railways had the last laugh when Darshan Gawkar converted.

The semifinalists: Pool-A: Railways & Army; Pool B: IOC & Odisha.

The results: