File photo of Pradeep Narwal
Raiders Pardeep Narwal and Surender Gill helped UP Yoddha beat Tamil Thalaivas 41-39 in Match 104 of Pro Kabaddi League Season 8. Both raiders secured Super 10s in a high-scoring game that was only decided in the final minute. The result will help Yoddha increase their chances of making it to the Playoffs.
Tamil Thalaivas matched U.P. blow for blow throughout the match but their lack of ALL OUTs eventually affected the outcome of the game. Manjeet scored a Super 10 (13 points) for the Tamil team.
The high-intensity first half saw both teams exchange the lead. Tamil Thalaivas, who did not have captain Surjeet Singh in the line-up, started on a positive note with their raiding duo of Ajinkya Pawar and Manjeet finding flaws in the UP defence. But Surender Gill slowly initiated a Yoddha fightback. Pardeep Narwal soon joined him with a 3-point Super Raid in the 9th minute to shift the balance. Three Thalaivas defenders followed UP's Shrikant Jadhav to the lobby without a touch which gave Yoddha another three points.
A Super Tackle by Himanshu slowed Yoddha down temporarily but they eventually got an ALL OUT in the 15th minute. That opened a 2-point lead for U.P. but Thalaivas immediately fought back with Himanshu clinching a 3-point Super Raid in the final minute of the first half. At the interval, Thalaivas had a 2-point lead with the scores 22-20.
Thalaivas started the second half on a positive note, but their usually reliable defence crumbled after the early minutes. Pardeep Narwal picked his Super 10 as Yoddha clinched another ALL OUT. Despite the advantage in the number of ALL OUTs, Yoddha could not extend the lead because they kept conceding easy Bonus Points to Tamil raiders.
Himanshu's clever raids gave the Tamil team an extra weapon as they slowly staged another comeback. There was nothing to separate the sides with 5 minutes remaining as both sets of raiders slowed down the pace of their raids.
Manjeet picked his Super 10 for Thalaivas but their defence, especially M Abishek, made too many mistakes to give Yoddha a 3-point lead with a minute remaining. Surender Gill picked his Super 10 in the process. That gap proved too much for the Thalaivas to fight back as UP clinched a well-fought victory.
Gujarat Giants beat Telugu Titans to keep playoff hopes alive
Defender Girish Ernak was the star for Gujarat Giants as they defeated Telugu Titans 34-32 in Match 105 of Pro Kabaddi League Season 8.
The left-corner defender scored a High 5 and was instrumental in giving the Giants a narrow lead in the final minutes of the match. The Titans once again struggled in the final 5 minutes of the match and squandered a 3-point lead.
The win will help Gujarat remain with a chance of making it to the Playoffs. Titans' Rajnish scored a Super 10 but had to be carried off the mat after suffering an injury early in the second half.
Gujarat Giants went to the mat with raiders Ajay Kumar and Pardeep Kumar on the bench. The Telugu Titans had the better start to the match with Rajnish looking swift. But Gujarat slowly got found their footing with Rakesh and Mahendra Rajput getting the raid points.
They smelled a chance to clinch an ALL OUT in the 14th minute, but Titans' Galla Raju scored 3-point Super Raid to stop the Giants. The Gujarat side kept pressing but against Titans' Surinder Singh clinched a Super Raid with 2 minutes to half time. The first half ended with the scores 14-14 and Gujarat struggling to break a resolute Titans defence.
Coach Manpreet Singh had clear instructions to play an aggressive line of defence and that helped Gujarat clinch their first ALL OUT five minutes after the break. Left corner Girish Ernak was in form for the Giants while at the other end Rakesh picked points in regular intervals. Rajnish picked a Super 10 for the Titans but suffered a knee injury which led to him being substituted with 12 minutes remaining.
But the Titans refused to give up and their defence stepped their game up to stop the Gujarat defence. They had 9 points compared to Giants' 2 in the 5 minutes after the first Time OUT. Adarsh's 2 point raid (+2 for ALL OUT) cleared all the Gujarat men on the mat and gave the Titans a 3-point lead with 5 minutes on the clock.
But Gujarat immediately drew level by not allowing any easy points to Telugu raiders. Girish Ernak clinched his High 5 as Gujarat took a narrow lead. With Rajnish off the mat, Telugu had very little raiding power and that helped the Giants secure the match in the final minute.
