Hockey India League 2025-26: Kalinga Lancers overcomes Ranchi Royals, secures 4-2 win
Kalinga Lancers overcame a deficit twice and called on the experience of its international midfield to overcome Ranchi Royals 4-2 in its opening Hockey India League fixture at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium in Chennai on Sunday.
Arthur Van Doren, Antoine Kina, and Craig Marais controlled the tempo through the centre to bail their side out after it conceded twice and appeared to be falling behind against the Royals’ pacy attack in the first quarter.
The Royals needed only 40 seconds for their first foray into the circle. Jack Waller fired a pass at Araijeet Singh Hundal, who drew a stick check and secured a penalty corner. Tom Boon fired his side ahead with a pinpoint dragflick into the top-right corner.
The Lancers mustered up a reply six minutes later, courtesy of Angad Bir Singh, who unleashed a 360–degree turn to catch his marker by surprise and hit his foot. Belgian Alexander Hendrickx drilled the short corner past Suraj Karkera to level the score.
In its early stages, the contest was as much an exercise in determining who had the better celebration as it was a hockey match. The Lancers pulled out their signature celebration – planting their hockey sticks into the ground like a staff on one knee – after the Royals improvised theirs – an archer taking a shot.
The Royals got one more chance to unfurl this celebration, in the ninth minute, after Mandeep Singh intercepted a long-range pass heading at keeper Krishan Pathak, swiveled to his right and nudged the ball past the custodian, nutmegging defender Rohit Kullu at the same time.
Most of the Lancers’ attempts at finding the equaliser in the opening quarter were undone in the final third for a lack of poise. Cooper Burns got the closest with his dribble through the heart of the Royals’ circle, but his shot was cleared over the post by Karkera.
But the Lancers found the solution in the second quarter. Marais, with his back to the goal, foxed his man with a sharp half-turn towards the goal and flashed a pass for Gursahibjit Singh to slot home at the far post.
The Lancers enjoyed more possession once Van Doren, Kina, and Liam Henderson powered the midfield by dropping deeper. This also got more support for Hendrickx, Kullu and Sanjay in building play up. The Royals’ circle entries dried up, and they could not get a sight at goal for the entire second quarter. The Lancers used it to pull ahead of their opponents.
Gursahibjit was in the right place in the 26th minute, latching onto a loose ball from a goalmouth melee that had ensued after Dilpreet Singh’s pass from the right. Two minutes later, Lancers doubled their lead with Hendrickx beating the Royals’ rusher and keeper for a second time in the match.
On the other side of half-time, the Lancers stuck to crowding their circle and forced the Royals to stitch their moves from the flanks.
Ravneet Singh made an audacious run into the circle in the 42nd minute, juggling the ball for nearly 15 yards and drawing a foul. The Royals won three successive penalty corners within the space of a minute but failed to convert any.
The final quarter was played out to a similar template, with the Lancers controlling the pace of play and covering space in their circle. For the Royals’ countless attempts at sneaking a way through, the Lancers waited with their defence shored up. Their blazing start that had initially shown promise ultimately came up against a wall that was the Lancers’ midfield might.
Published on Jan 04, 2026