Maha makes a stunning comeback to defeat MP

Pune: The Maharashtra women’s hockey team advanced to their second straight Women’s Nationals hockey final on Friday thanks to a tremendous comeback in the fourth and final period, two poor quarters, and a few missed penalty corners.

At Major Dhyanchand Stadium in Nehrunagar, Pimpri, Maharashtra, who had fallen short of Madhya Pradesh 1-5 in the championship match in Andhra Pradesh the previous year, proved to be stronger this time around and defeated the winners 2-1.

After defeating Jharkhand 4-0 in the last semifinal, Haryana will play the hosts in the championship game.
Hritika Singh gave MP, who were striving for penalty corners after a goalless first half, victory in the 28th minute.
After trailing 1-0 till the middle of the fourth quarter, Maharashtra turned the tide in the last eight minutes to change the result in their favour. In the first round, Maharashtra girls struggled to match their opponents’ ability level. MP were adept at navigating the play sections, speedier, and had superior stick handling. However, the Maharashtra defence held strong and prevented MP from scoring on four of their five earned penalty corners.
Long passes from MP defender Nilanjani Rai to forwards Hritika Singh and Ishika Chaudhary made sure the visiting squad, encouraged by a boisterous crowd, kept up the pressure on the home side.
Strikers Shalini Sakure, Kajal Atpadkar, and Rutuja Pisal broke free from their bindings and continued to enter the MP half throughout the last quarter. In the fourth quarter, they were rewarded with three penalty corners. Through an indirect PC routine, Akanksha Singh scored the equaliser in the 52nd minute.
Akanksha gave Maha hope when she deflected a shot from the middle and touched the ground with her left knee, defeating MP goalkeeper Aditi Maheshwari. After regaining possession of the ball, the penalty corner injector took a cross, which Akanksha then put in.
Maharashtra persisted in pursuing the winner and refused to let the MP girls mount a counterattack. The hitting circle became a bustling area, making it difficult for the visiting defenders to handle the chaos. Yogita Bora sent the ball to Kajal, who was standing in front of the goalpost, in the 56th minute after he had been taken from the MP defence.
When the ball struck an MP player’s leg, the umpire seized the opportunity, and Kajal attempted a shot by lowering herself and relying on her right knee. It was 2-1 Maharatra with four minutes remaining.
Previously, Haryana featured a group of foreign and seasoned players. They scored via Jyoti (40′), Deepika (57′), Sharmila Devi (44′), and Navneet Kaur (27th).