National Bank and Punjab-A move into the semifinals of the 34th U-20 National Hockey Championship.

KARACHI: National Bank of Pakistan and Punjab-A have moved into the semifinals of the 34th U-20 National Hockey Championship. NBP beat Sindh 4–1 and Punjab-A defeated PIA on penalty shootouts 5–4 in the two quarterfinals played at the Hockey Club Pakistan Stadium here on Monday.

 The Bankers exerted pressure on Sindh lads in the beginning of the first quarterfinal. Azfar Yaqoob and Atiq Arshad made a fine move in the 7th minute and got a penalty corner. Goalkeeper stopped the strong hit but Shan Arshad smartly moved in to score on the rebound. Faizan Ali and Mubashir Ali launched an attack in the 15thminute and were awarded another penalty corner which was successfully converted by Mubashir. Naveed’s lone effort in the 43rd minute rewarded him with a field goal while Mubashir struck his second goal on a penalty corner in the 60th minute. Sindh forwards failed to make any notable move throughout the match. Their forwards had no idea where and to whom to pass. Most of their passes were intercepted. They had only one chance when Ali Mussarat and Wahab Mazari made a good move and passed the ball to Badaruddin in the D who neatly deflected the ball to score the only goal for Sindh. Muneer and Afsar supervised the match. Punjab lads demonstrated immense resolve and temperament against their superior opponents in the second quarterfinal.
They made aggressive moves and pierced through the PIA defense many a times but faltered in their finishing. PIA took lead amid a very fine move by Faizan Ali, Arslan and Mudassar in the 18th minute. Abu Bakr struck it successfully. After taking lead the Airliners took the proceedings easily and Punjab forwards took full advantage of their complacent. Aamir Yaqoob and Ahmed Nadeem initiated a vigorous attack and created a chance for Asif Ali who neatly scored a field goal in the 23rd minute.
 Both teams made some nice moves in the last quart but failed to make any contribution despite getting a penalty corner each. Both missed an open chance each. Mudassar of PIA got possession of the ball inside the 25 and brilliantly dribbled to enter in the D where he over- zealous hit went outside. At 1-1 draw the match entered into the penalty shoots-out stage Punjab scored four goals while PIA netted three. Hamza and Takreem Iftikhar were the field umpires. Quarterfinals (Tuesday): Khyber Pakhtunkhwa vs Sui Southern Gas Company (2.30pm), WAPDA vs Railways (4.30pm).