New Delhi: An all-round performance from U.P. Yoddha saw the side beat a struggling Puneri Paltan 35-30 in an exciting VIVO Pro Kabaddi League match at the Thyagaraj Sports Complex in New Delhi on Monday.
Shrikant Jadhav, with a Super 10 (awarded to raiders who secure 10 raid points or more) was the star for the UP team, as the result saw Yoddha jump to seventh on the points table.
Pune coach Anup Kumar was forced to assign the raiding duties to Manjeet and young Pankaj Mohite after Nitin Tomar was ruled out due to an injury. Similarly, the experienced raiding duo of Monu Goyat and Rishank Devadiga weren’t part of the starting seven for UP as they handed over the raiding duties to Shrikant Jadhav and Surender Gill. But the young players rose up to occasion, especially Shrikant Jadhav, who scored 8 raid points in a first half that saw UP Yoddha inflict an All-Out on the Paltan in the 12th minute. A raid-heavy first half ended 16-9 in favour of the UP team.
Manjeet started the second half brightly for Pune, heeding to his coach’s advice and picking up valuable Bonus Points. But UP’s defence, especially Sumit and Ashu Singh, picked their game up after the restart to ensure Yoddha remained in the lead. A two-point raid by Shrikant Jadhav in the 11th minute of the half forced another All-Out on the Pune side while the raider secured his Super 10.
Pune struggled to come into the match despite Manjeet’s solo efforts that saw him secure a Super 10 with 6 minutes on the clock. He enforced an All-Out on UP with a two-point raid with two minutes remaining but the Yoddha defence held firm, thanks to a High 5 by Sumit, to clinch an important victory. Paltan’s defeat mean they continue to remain second from bottom in the table.
Haryana Steelers overcame Bengal Warriors 36-33
Meanwhile, Vikash Kandola was once again the star for Haryana Steelers as they overcame a stiff challenge from the Bengal Warriors to win the VIVO Pro Kabaddi League match 36-33 at the Thyagaraj Sports Complex on Monday.
The high-scoring game belonged to the raiders with Vikash Kandola and Maninder Singh (Bengal Warriors) securing Super 10s (awarded to raiders who get 10 or more raid points) as both defences struggled to get a stranglehold of the match.
