Ashoka Premier League Results

Avneesh Garimella, Class of 2019

This weekend witnessed the close of the 4th edition of the Ashoka Premier League. Grander than ever, APL 4.0 brought its fair share of excitement, disappointments, surprises and joy.

The two-day tournament saw sixteen teams compete for victory. The teams, divided into four groups, played the group stage matches on the first day. There was intense competition as teams tried to qualify for a place in the quarter finals by winning both their matches on the first day. Day 1 saw Nutty Masters from Group A, FZ warriors from Group C and MJ Dons from Group D confirm their place in the quarterfinals, while the rest of teams were ready to fight it out on Day 2, some praying for a miracle and some ready to make that final push.

Day 2 began with the final part of the group stages with 8 teams finally making it, within which, some of the teams were definitely the dark horses of the tournament. The quarter-finals saw a lot of surprises as some of the heavy favourites to win the title were knocked out by the underdogs, especially during penalties. The final 4 teams to make it to the semi-finals were Gabru, FZ Warriors, Wakanda and Studs Football. Gabru played the first semifinal against FZ Warriors and lost 2-1 in a close penalty shootout. Wakanda and Studs Football played the second semifinal, with Wakanda pulling off a last minute goal to qualify for the finals. Gabru won the 3rd place match against Studs 2-0 setting the stage for the finals.

The final was an intense match between FZ Warriors, the team who had won every match in the tournament so far, and Wakanda, the underdogs who had made it a habit to knock the heavyweights out of the league. There were stellar performances by both teams which led to a close penalty shootout. FZ Warriors were crowned champions after winning the penalties 1-0.

The top scorers of the tournament were Chirag Chinnappa from Nutty Masters and Philip Deweyi from MJ Dons, with 4 goals apiece. Sathya Sahay of FZ warriors not only awarded the Golden Glove but was also the Male MVP; while, Vrinda Iyer of FZ warriors won the Female MVP award.

APL 4.0 saw passions run high and many close matches along with brilliant performance. The credit for the success of the tournament goes to organisers Adhiraj Srivastava, Krishaang Verma and Punyaslok Panda.