Bengaluru: U Mumba annihilated arch-rivals Jaipur Pink Panthers 47-21 in a strong defensive performance in the second VIVO Pro Kabaddi League match at the SreeKanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Saturday. An all-round performance from U Mumba, championed by raider Abhishek Singh’s Super 10 (with 13 raid points), secured a crucial win for the Mumbai outfit in Pro Kabaddi League’s oldest rivalry. The win allowed Mumbai to climb to fifth in the points table while the Pink Panthers remained third.
U Mumba dominated the first half against Jaipur, ending with a 16-point gap – the best lead going into the half time in Season 7. Their raiders, both Abhishek Singh and Arjun Deshwal, looked comfortable on the mat while Sandeep Narwal had his ‘Beast mode’ certainly ON, pulling off powerful tackles as U Mumba stifled the Jaipur raiders. The Mumbai side enforced their first All-Out on Jaipur in the 10th minute of the match and followed it up with another in the 16th minute as Jaipur looked perplexed at what hit them. Worryingly for the Pink Panthers, their defence was having a bad day too, with no successful tackles in a first half that ended 23-7 in favour of Mumbai.
Captain Deepak Niwas Hooda’s form has been something of a worry for the Pink Panthers and his slump continued in the second half as U Mumba pulled further clear. The Mumbai side inflicted a demoralising third All-Out in the fourth minute after the restart to push the lead to 22 points as Fazel Atrachali and Harendra Kumar joined Sandeep Narwal in the tackle points.
Unfortunately for U Mumba, Sandeep Narwal took a blow on the head during a tackle and had to be replaced in the seventh minute of the half. ‘Sultan’ Atrachali and Harendra Kumar secured their High 5s as U Mumba forced another All-Out on the Pink Panthers with three minutes remaining in the game to cross the 40-point mark. The match ended with a brilliant move by the Abhishek pulling off a massive four-point Super Raid and clinching his Super 10.
Gujarat Fortunegiants beat defending champions Bengaluru Bulls 32-23
Gujarat Fortunegiants produced a composed performance with outfox defending champions Bengaluru Bulls 32-23 in the opening match of the VIVO Pro Kabaddi League ‘rivalry week’ in front of a packed audience at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru.
Sachin’s five raid points and a collective effort from the team’s defence helped Gujarat beat the home side in a tight encounter that had been billed as the repeat of season 6 final. Importantly for Gujarat, the result catapulted them to sixth in the table.
