Olympian Surendra Singh's team defeated Olympian Lalit Upadhyay's Rajdhani Royals, with Ketan Kushwaha being named striker and player of the match.

Indravati Tigresses defeated Mahanadi Falcons 4-1 in the women's exhibition match, with captain Aanchal Sahu scoring two goals.

Raipur, October 2026. The inaugural match of the Chhattisgarh Hockey League witnessed a thrilling clash between the teams of two Olympian players of Indian hockey. Olympian Surendra Singh's Nyaydhani Knights started their campaign with a resounding victory by defeating Olympian Lalit Upadhyay's Rajdhani Royals 2-1 in the match played at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Hockey Stadium in Raipur on Thursday. Chirag and Ketan Kushwaha scored one goal each for Nyaydhani Knights, while Roshan was the only goal scorer for Rajdhani Royals.

The Nyaydhani Knights played aggressively from the start of the match. Chirag converted a penalty corner in the 12th minute to give his team an early lead. His powerful flick was blocked by Rajdhani Royals' first rusher and goalkeeper Himanshu Malik. Early in the second quarter, Ketan Kushwaha scored a brilliant field goal to give the Nyaydhani Knights a 2-0 lead. Ketan dribbled past a few defenders and headed the ball into the goalpost.

Just a minute later, the Capital Knights had a chance to further strengthen their lead, but they failed to convert a penalty corner. Meanwhile, Capital Royals captain Lalit Upadhyay increased his aggression in midfield to try and bring his team back into the match. However, Capital Royals also failed to capitalize on the rare penalty corner.

Surender Singh of the Nyaydhani Knights performed brilliantly in the defensive line. He did not allow the opposition players to play freely in the D-zone. The Nyaydhani Knights defenders consistently cleared the ball out of danger, which reflected in the score. In the final moments of the second quarter, Surender Singh suffered a facial injury while attempting to intercept a pass intended for Aniket Kujur of the Rajdhani Royals.

At the start of the second half of the match, Nyaydhani Knights got a penalty corner due to stick check by Sanjeet Tirkey, but the team could not convert it into a goal. The team did not get success in the next chance as well. Ketan Kushwaha made continuous attempts to score a goal in the opposition's D zone, but his shots lacked accuracy. On the other hand, in the third quarter, Rajdhani Royals players also entered the opposition's D zone several times, but due to lack of coordination among the forward players, these attempts could not be converted into goals.

The pace of play slowed in the fourth quarter. Rajdhani Royals faced the challenge of making a comeback, but the team's forward line failed to perform effectively. The pressure on the team increased as they missed several scoring opportunities. This quarter saw players suffer their second injury. Rajdhani Royals' first rusher, Premchand Soy, collided heavily with Chirag of Nyaydhani Knights. Both players fell to the ground, forcing a brief halt to play.

There were no major upsets after that, and the Nyaydhani Knights won 2-1. Ketan Kushwaha, who impressed throughout the match, was named both the Striker of the Match and the Player of the Match.

Two matches will be played at this stadium on Friday, October 23rd. The first match will be played between Mainpat Titans and Bailadila Bulls at 5:30 pm. This will be followed by a clash between Chakradhar Champions and Sanskardhani Strikers at 7:30 pm.

Indravati Tigresses registered a lopsided win in the women's exhibition match, defeating Mahanadi Falcons 4-1.