PKL 12: [Watch] Joginder Narwal gets emotional over Naveen Kumar's injury

Dabang Delhi are the new table-toppers at the end of Day 12 of PKL 12.

Dabang Delhi clinched a 45-34 win over Bengal Warriorz on September 9 in Match 23 of Pro Kabaddi League Season 12 (PKL 12) to continue their unbeaten streak with four wins from four matches.

However, the night was marked by an emotional moment as Delhi head coach Joginder Narwal was visibly moved to tears when discussing the injury of Haryana Steelers’ raider Naveen Kumar, who was part of Delhi until PKL 11.

Delhi’s strong performance was led once again by captain Ashu Malik, who scored 16 raid points. He received valuable support from Ajinkya Pawar, who contributed 8 points, including 5 in raids and 3 in defence, highlighted by a crucial Super Tackle on Bengal’s Devank Dalal.

Devank, despite achieving another Super 10, and Vishwas S, who made a return with 9 raid points, were unable to prevent their team’s defeat.

Here’s what the representatives from both teams had to say during the press conference: 

Dabang Delhi

On winning four in a row

Dabang Delhi head coach Joginder Narwal expressed his satisfaction with the team’s hard work and success. “It’s the hard work of my boys; every one of my players played well and the team won, so I am happy with them.”

He acknowledged the role of fan support and player effort: “It’s all your love and the prayers of our fans, plus the effort of my players. I’ve never made big claims in my life, nor will I start now. Their hard work is paying off, and hopefully, they will play well in the upcoming matches. Wins and losses happen to all good teams in this league; we’ll try to play well no matter who we face, and I hope my team keeps winning.”

Ajinkya Pawar’s performance

Speaking on Ajinkya Pawar’s efforts, Narwal said, “Don’t call this a comeback. He’s a good raider for our team, and whenever he’s played in Pro Kabaddi or for Railways, he’s done very well. Whichever Pro Kabaddi team he’s played for, he’s performed, and today he’s part of my team. I am proud that I picked him. He is a quality player and will perform well in the future, too.”

Watch full PC here-

Thoughts on the team’s momentum

Dabang Delhi captain Ashu Malik shared insights on the team’s momentum: “The team played very well, and whoever the coach gave responsibility to, everyone fulfilled it. Today our raiders played quite well. Ajinkya performed as an all-rounder; he even put in a game-turning tackle on Devank, which gave us the momentum, and the team kept playing well after that.”

Ajinkya’s Super Tackle

Ajinkya Pawar, reflecting on his critical Super Tackle, said, “I am happy because I did exactly what the coach told me, played with the confidence he gives, and did my best for the team.” He added that fans can expect more tackle points from him in upcoming matches.

He even praised the team environment, saying, “In Delhi’s team, there’s no hierarchy amongst seniors. Everyone stays like family, happily together.”

On Naveen Kumar’s injury

The mood shifted when the conversation turned to Naveen Kumar’s injury. Narwal’s face turned sombre before he broke into tears: “I spoke with him and I went to meet him too.” Unable to continue, he handed the mic to Ashu Malik, who reassured, “We went to meet him, and look, injuries are just bad luck; it can happen to anyone, at any moment. It hurt a lot, but he’ll return soon and recover fast. It isn’t a serious injury, there’s no big problem.”

Narwal then added, “He was part of our team and is very close to me. He’s played so much for us. So yes, it hurts a lot. He worked really hard to come back; he was fit. He played well last season, and in the Nationals and Federation Cup too. There’s nothing more to say, he’s not just great for India, but for the world. He’s dear to me as well as Ashu, just like my own kids. I cried a lot for him yesterday, I can’t even explain.”

Bengal Warriorz

What went wrong?

Bengal Warriorz head coach Naveen Kumar explained the reasons behind the loss: “We lost the match today not because of defence, but raiding. We suffered two Super Tackles. If those hadn’t happened, we could have come back.”

Captain Devank Dalal accepted responsibility for his role in the match turning point: “Look, I conceded two Super Tackles, and the match turned there. I admit my mistake; we lost the match because of me.”

On areas of improvement, coach Naveen Kumar said, “At the start, the match went as per our plan. But somewhere in the middle, our defence and raiding both faltered. We’ll work on both and do better in the next match.”

On the challenge of facing Fazel and Surjeet

When asked about playing against Fazel and Surjeet, Devank Dalal commented, “There wasn’t any particular difficulty, just a few mistakes. We’ll correct those and get better for sure.”

Vishwas and Manprit’s performance

Naveen Kumar expressed confidence in Vishwas’ performance, saying, “We trusted Vishwas would do well, and we’d already planned our raiding rotation for each match. He did well.”

On newcomer Manprit, he added, “He’s a new player, it’s his first PKL season, and we have high hopes he’ll do well.”

What next?

Reflecting on lessons from the Vizag leg, Naveen Kumar concluded, “In the coming matches, we’ll play with fresh energy and fix every mistake we made here in Vizag.”

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