Haryana has been crowned the champions of the 15th Hockey India Junior Men National Championship 2025 after pulling off a sensational late comeback to defeat Odisha 3-2 in a nail-biting final. Nitin emerged as the hero of the match, scoring a brilliant solo goal in the final minute to seal the title for his team in Jalandhar on Saturday.
For the majority of the final, Odisha looked poised to lift the trophy. After a goalless first quarter, they seized control of the game with two quick strikes from penalty corners. Deepak Pradhan found the net in the 17th minute, followed swiftly by a goal from Pratap Toppo in the 19th minute, giving Odisha a commanding 2-0 lead heading into halftime.
Trailing by two goals, Haryana mounted a remarkable and aggressive comeback in the final quarter. The fightback began in the 50th minute when Chirag successfully converted a penalty corner. Just a minute later, Nitin scored a field goal to level the scores at 2-2. With the game heading towards a shootout, Nitin produced a moment of magic, dribbling past two defenders and unleashing a powerful strike in the final minute to clinch the championship for Haryana in dramatic fashion.
Earlier in the day, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh played out an equally dramatic bronze medal match. The game was a seesaw battle, with Uttar Pradesh taking a late 3-2 lead. However, Punjab's Japnit Singh converted a crucial penalty stroke in the 59th minute to tie the game at 3-3 and force a shootout.
In the tense shootout, Punjab held their nerve to secure the bronze medal with a 4-3 victory. Charanjeet Singh, Lovenoor Singh, Om Rajnesh Saini, and Sunny all successfully converted their attempts for Punjab, capping off a thrilling final day of the championship and ensuring their spot on the podium.