The Tamil Thalaivas put in a fantastic all-round performance to hand the Puneri Paltan their first loss of the Pro Kabaddi League season at the GMCB Indoor Stadium, Hyderabad on Wednesday. U Mumba beat the Gujarat Giants to get their first win of the season.
The Thalaivas won 35-30, to end the Paltans' 14-match unbeaten streak stretching to last season.
It was the Thalaivas who had the better of the early exchanges, as they raced into a five-point lead within the first five minutes of the contest. Narender Kandola and Nitesh Kumar were doing most of the damage at this point. However, that’s when Mohit Goyat took charge, registering a flurry of quick points, helping the Paltan roar back into the contest.
As the half wore on, the Tamil Thalaivas continued to keep their opponents at bay. In the final phase of the half, Sachin inflicted an all out on the Paltan, which helped the Thalaivas extend their lead.
Sachin and Kandola were leading from the front for the Thalaivas, while it was Goyat, who was picking up the majority of the points for the defending champions. At the half-time break, the Thalaivas led 19-15.
The Thalaivas made a strong start to the second half, and had the momentum. But the Paltan side weren’t making it easy for them, as the fought hard and clawed their way back into the contest. With the second half nearing the midway stage, the Thalaivas’ lead had been cut down to four points, and Goyat had completed his Super 10.
But with just over 10 minutes to go the Thalaivas inflicted another all out, extending the lead to an eight-point one. The Thalaivas did not let up their intensity in the final minutes and walked off with their second consecutive win of the season.
Amirmohammad Zafardanesh put in a fine performance to help U Mumba beat the Gujarat Giants 33-27.
U Mumba picked up the first points of the game courtesy Manjeet and Zafardanesh, but from the very beginning, the Giants were fighting hard to keep their opposition in check. After the first few minutes, the U Mumba lead was wiped out, as Parteek Dahiya, Guman Singh and Jitender Yadav turned it around for the Giants.
For U Mumba, it was Manjeet who was leading the charge, and at the halfway stage of the first half, they led the contest with a three-point lead. Himanshu then landed a super tackle for the Giants to bring the contest back to level terms. At the end of the first half, U Mumba led 14-13.
Early in the second half, Zafardanesh inflicted an all out on the Giants, and that gave them the early momentum. However, the Giants weren’t throwing in the towel and were looking to mount a comeback.
As the second half wore on, the U Mumba side managed to keep their opponents at bay. With just under 10 minutes to go, the Giants trailed by 5 points.
In the final phase of play, Zafardanesh reached the 10-point mark for the game, as the U Mumba side began to consolidate on their lead. The Gujarat Giants were throwing the kitchen sink at the opposition, but it wasn’t to be. Eventually, U Mumba came away with the win.
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