Puneri Paltan and UP Yoddhas secured contrasting wins in their first match Pro Kabaddi League on Monday at the GMCB Indoor Stadium, Gachibowli, Hyderabad.
Defending champions Paltan beat the Patna Pirates 40-25 while the Yoddhas began their season with a 28-23 win over Dabang Delhi KC.
Paltan started off strongly, as Aslam Inamdar and co quickly stormed into a 4-0 lead in the first few minutes of the game. Soon after though, the Patna Pirates started to fight back with Ankit’s Super Tackle on Inamdar cutting down the deficit to one point in the early exchanges.
With just under ten minutes to go in the first half, the Paltan had surged ahead and were looking to consolidate on a three-point lead. After that, a flurry of solid defensive tackles further extended the Paltan’s lead, who were dominating proceedings at this point in time.
For the Paltan, captain Inamdar led by example with seven points and had fantastic support from Aman with five points and Mohit Goyat, who bagged three points. At the half-time break, Puneri Paltan led 20-10.
After the break, the Paltan continued to dominate the contest, keeping the Pirates at an arm’s length. At the midway point in the second half, the Paltan had a 13-point lead to their name.
The Pirates were giving it their all to mount a comeback, but the likes of Goyat, Inamdar and Aman were having none of it.
In the final minutes, the Pirates’ Jang Kun Lee was introduced and his arrival triggered a round of rapturous applause from the crowd. However, there wasn’t enough time to turn the tide, as the Paltan came away with a comfortable win to wrap up an entertaining Monday evening.
Yoddhas edge past Delhi
The Yoddhas kicked off proceedings when they picked up the first points of the game through a Surender Gill raid. After that, it was a tight battle, as the two competitors traded raids and points without conceding an inch to each other. Neither side could take an outright lead in the early exchanges in what was turning out to be a close battle.
However, as the first half reached the midway stage, Bhavani Rajput took charge as the Yoddhas started to settle in, and edged ahead of their opponents. As the half wore on, Ashu Malik and Nitin Panwar helped Dabang Delhi KC fight back and bring the contest back on level terms. The first half ended with the scores tied at 12-11.
The second half was also a cautious start with both sides taking their time to strike. Both sides were finding it tough to break each other down despite multiple well thought out moves in the early exchanges. At the end of the first phase of the second half, there was hardly any difference between the two sides. The Yoddhas led by 18-16, with the game very much on a knife-edge.
By now Naveen Kumar had picked up the baton from Ashu Malik, and was leading the charge for the Delhi as they looked to fightback. However, in the final phase of play, the Yoddhas cranked up the intensity as Sahul Kumar inflicted an all out on Delhi and the raiders also picked up crucial points.
That helped the Yoddhas take a five-point lead with less than five minutes to go. Eventually, the Yoddhas came away with the win in what was a closely fought game. Rajput top scored for the UP Yoddhas with seven points.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!