PKL 10: Gujarat Giants' road to playoffs

Fazel Atrachali will look to lead the Giants to their first title win.

The Pro Kabaddi League season 10 (PKL 10) is almost done with the group stage fixtures and now the focus shifts to the all-important playoffs. Gujarat Giants confirmed their qualification into the knockouts following a very fruitful campaign so far.

The Giants have had a decent campaign so far. They began on the right note with three wins in as many matches before losing three on the trot. It has been a very bumpy ride for them this season. Nonetheless, they have made it to the knockouts.

On that note, let us take a look at their journey to the playoffs.

First Half of the Season: Strong Start

As mentioned earlier, Gujarat Giants began their season with a series of three back-to-back wins over Telugu Titans, Bengaluru Bulls and U Mumba before losing three games on the bounce against Patna Pirates, Jaipur Pink Panthers and Haryana Steelers.

They bounced back and again won three games in a row against UP Yoddhas, Tamil Thalaivas and the Bengal Warriors. In the tenth match, they lost to Dabang Delhi KC before getting one more win over the Telugu Titans. Out of 11 matches, the Giants won seven games and lost four games in the first leg.

Second half of the season: Mixed performances

They did not start the second of the season on the right foot. It all began with a defeat against Puneri Paltan before a close margin win over Dabang Delhi KC. Gujarat Giants again lost to Puneri Paltan before clinching a Republic Day win over U Mumba.

After that, they faced two back-to-back losses against Patna Pirates and Haryana Steelers respectively before winning four back-to-back games against Tamil Thalaivas, Bengal Warriors, Bengaluru Bulls, and the UP Yoddhas. They lost their final group stage game against table topper Jaipur Pink Panthers. In 11 matches, they won six matches and lost five.

Home Leg: Dominant performances

The Giants hosted the first leg of the season at their home turf. Gujarat Giants won all of their three opening matches but lost the final match of their home leg against the Patna Pirates. They began their home leg with a hard-fought 38-32 win over the Telugu Titans.

In the next match, they pulled off a close 34-31 win over the Bengaluru Bulls before defeating U Mumba 39-37 in the third match. And then, the Patna Pirates brought an end to their winning streak with a 30-33 win over them. Overall, it was a dominant performance by the Fazel Atrachali-led unit.

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