Surender Gill shone with his raids as UP Yoddha thrashed Puneri Paltan 50-40 in a high-scoring match of Pro Kabaddi League Season 8 here on Monday.
Gill (21 points) and Pardeep Narwal (10 points) scored Super 10s for Yoddha in a match, which had way too many defensive errors.
Aslam Inamdar and Mohit Goyat had Super 10s for the Pune side, but they did not get any help from a stuttering defence that conceded far too many points.
The first half was a high-scoring affair with just one empty raid in the first five minutes.
Pardeep Narwal started the proceedings with a three-point Super Raid and that certainly set the tone for the other raiders.
Inamdar and Goyat combined to help Pune clinch the game's first 'All Out' close to the 10th minute but Yoddha immediately clawed their way back.
It was raining Super Raids on both sides and Gill's three-point effort with seven minutes remaining helped Yoddha inflict an 'All Out'.
Both the left corners -- Pune's Vishal Bharadwaj and Yoddha's Sumit -- were having an error-prone night and conceded far too many points in the first half that ended 20-20.
Yoddha started the second half brightly with Gill aggressive in his raids.
His four-point Super Raid in the fifth minute paved the way for another 'All Out' which helped Yoddha open a seven-point lead.
He and Pardeep Narwal took turns to eat points away from Pune and eventually got them an 'All Out' in the 10th minute.
Yoddha scored a massive 20 points in the first 10 minutes after the restart to open a 15-point lead.
Both Narwal and Gill crossed their Super 10s while Goyat did the same for Pune.
Inamdar manufactured a three-point Super Raid in the 12th minute of the second half to spark a comeback.
But Pune's defenders were having a night to forget with Gill picking points with ease.
Despite Inamdar and Goyat's best attempts, Pune could not close the gap as Yoddha clinched a valuable win.
In another match, defending champions Bengal Warriors beat Telugu Titans 28-27.
The low-scoring affair saw both teams exchanging leads with defences on top.
Bengal captain Maninder Singh scored a Super 10 but it was the Warriors' defenders who showed the mental composure to clinch a last-minute victory.
Telugu Titans was left wondering what they need to do to secure a win in Season 8.
Their raider Rajnish once again clinched a Super 10 (11 points) but an 'All Out' in the dying minutes cost them dearly.
