Chandigarh, September 11: If anyone is looking forward to India’s pre-Olympic qualifiers with bated breath, the man to watch out for is Baljit Singh Dadwal. Goalkeepers, they say, can often set the tone for a match and Baljit did just that for India in the Asia Cup final on Sunday.

In a match that saw Indian forwards on a goal spree, it was Balbir Singh Dadwal who fetched the Man of the Match award in the final, saving three penalty corners and two other saves . It was a dream homecoming for the Chandigarh Dyanamos goalkeeper who, along with Rajpal Singh and Jaswinder Singh, was honoured today by the Chandigarh Hockey Association.

Baljit Singh Dadwal made his international debut as goalkeeper at the junior level in the four-nations tournament in Poland in 2000. But goalkeeping was not the first choice for the 25-year-old. “I used to play as a right winger for my school team. It was during u-15 pre-Nehru Cup Tournament in 1993 that our frontline goalkeeper got injured and I donned the cap of goalkeeper. Since then, I have been enjoying my stint as goalkeeper,” said Dadwal who is a product of the local SD College, Sector 32.

A string of good performances at the domestic circuit saw Dadwal joining Indian Oil in August 2000 and soon the young goalkeeper was eyeing a national spot. But a shoulder injury midway in his career forced him to miss most of the matches in the next two seasons. “I was lucky that I recovered fully from the shoulder injury,” said Dadwal.

Baljeet’s moment of glory, though, came during the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games when he was named as reserve goalkeeper for the Indian team. Baljeet made his international debut during the 16th Azlan Shah Tournament held in Malaysia. “The goalkeeper’s spot in the Indian team has some stiff competition, I am hopeful that my performance in the Asia Cup will strengthen my place in the team,” said the goalkeeper who has played 16 international matches for India.