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Rajgir. In the 16th edition of the Hockey India Sub-Junior Men’s National Championship 2026, in the quarterfinal matches of Division ‘A’ played on Thursday, the teams of Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman-Diu registered spectacular victories and made it to the semi-finals.

In the first match of the day, the teams of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman-Diu defeated Hockey Chandigarh 2-1. Captain Dheeraj Pal played an important role in his team’s victory by scoring both the goals, while Jasmeet Singh scored a consolation goal for Chandigarh.

The second quarterfinal saw an exciting contest between Hockey Punjab and Hockey Jharkhand. Punjab won 5-3. Rajveer Singh scored two goals, while Akash Deep, Sahabajpreet Singh and Sanmukh Singh also scored. Jharkhand’s Ashish Tani Purti scored a brilliant hat-trick, but could not lead the team to victory.

In the third match, Uttar Pradesh gave a strong performance by defeating Odisha Hockey Association 6-3. Nitish Yadav scored two goals, while Karan Dhanuk, Prahlad Rajbhar, captain Ketan Kushwaha and Rohit Pal also contributed to the score sheet. Deepak Prakash Toppo scored a hat-trick for Odisha, but could not save the team from defeat.

The most exciting match of the day was played between Hockey Madhya Pradesh and Hockey Haryana, which ended in a 0-0 draw till the scheduled time. After this, Madhya Pradesh won 4-3 in the shootout. Goalkeeper Ayush Rajak performed brilliantly and made two important saves and ensured the team’s victory.

Earlier, even in the matches of the seventh day, the teams had shown strong play, which determined the strong contenders for the quarterfinals. Now all eyes are on the semi-final matches, where the battle for the title is expected to be more exciting.