PSB, Indian Oil in Surjit finals

Punjab and Sind Bank will lock horns with Indian Oil in the final of the 23rd Surjit hockey tournament in Jalandhar on Wednesday.

In the semifinals played at the Surjit Stadium on Tuesday, PSB pipped Bharat Petroleum 4-3 via tie-breaker and Indian Oil beat Punjab Police 2-0 to book berths in the final.

The PSB-Bharat Petroleum match was a gripping one with both sides putting up tough fights to go into the lemon break without bothering the scorer.

In the second half, PSB earned a penalty stroke in the 39th minute but Rajwinder Singh wasted the golden opportunity to earn the much-required lead for his team.

With both the sides failing to open the account, the match went into tie-breaker where the bankmen prevailed over their rivals.

In the other semifinal, captain Deepak Thakur and Bikramjit Singh scored one goal each to help the star-studded Indian Oil reach the final.

Bikramjeet Singh converted a penalty stroke in the 26th minute to put the oilmen ahead.

Indian Oil consolidated the lead in the 66th minute when Thakur scored an excellent field goal.

Punjab Police earned two penalty corners in the 12th and 58th minutes, but failed to convert any of these.

The women's final will also be played on Wednesday, when Central Railways will battle it out against Northern Railways.