PKL 8: Delhi register win over Tamil, Mumbai crush Bengal

Both teams played brilliantly to notch up a victory.

Naveen Kumar was the star for Dabang Delhi K.C. as they beat Tamil Thalaivas 32-31 in a closely fought Match 110 of Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) Season 8. The star raider scored 13 points for Delhi as they overcame a stiff challenge mounted by the Tamil team in the dying minutes. The win will help Delhi increase their chances of a Top-2 finish in the league stages.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CSCfbSjnmM

Thalaivas miscalculated the last raid and didn’t attempt for a bonus which could have helped them clinch 2 points to level the match. The result means the team from Chennai are out of the current Top 6 and will need a flawless end to the season to keep their playoff hopes alive. 

Delhi started the match on the front foot with Naveen Kumar looking ominous. He picked up easy points from the Tamil defence, while at the end, Manjeet did his best to keep Thalaivas within touching distance. The absence of Ajinkya Pawar hampered Thalaivas’ usual double-headed attack. The pressure finally helped Dabang clinch an ALL OUT in the 13th minute and open an 8-point lead. Despite the gap, Thalaivas were playing well, especially captain Surjeet Singh. Delhi’s Neeraj Narwal also contributed to the raids as the first half ended with scores 17-10.

Delhi controlled the match in the early minutes of the second half despite Thalaivas upping a gear. Manjeet kept prodding the Delhi defence while Sagar also started picking form in the right corner. The momentum shifted to Thalaivas’ side in the 10th minute when 3 Delhi defenders went out of bounds as Tamil raider Himanshu entered the lobby without a touch. Manjeet immediately added another point to make it a 3-point game and just one Delhi player on the mat.

The Thalaivas finally got an ALL OUT with 8 minutes on the clock to level the scores at 23-23. Naveen Kumar clinched his Super 10 as he continued to get the better of the Tamil defence. Manjeet wasn’t in a mood to let Delhi run away with the lead though.

He picked up a Super 10 as his touch point helped Thalaivas level the scores with just 2 minutes remaining. But Manjeet Chhillar produced a clutch tackle in the final minute to send Tamil’s Manjeet to the dugout. Naveen then picked up a point to open a 2-point lead which the Thalaivas couldn’t reduce in their last raid.

U Mumba defeated Bengal Warriors

U Mumba captain Fazel Atrachali had a night to remember as he marshalled the defence to beat defending champions Bengal Warriors 37-27 in match 111 of PKL Season 8. The “Sultan” clinched a High 5 (8 Tackle Points) in a remarkable game of Kabaddi where he sometimes single-handedly stopped opposition defender Maninder Singh from scoring.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpkHJKOE1Es

Right corner Rinku aided his captain with a High 5 (5 tackle points) while the Mumbai raiding duo of Ajith Kumar (9 points) and Abhishek Singh (8 points) ensured the points came in from the other side of the mat as well. The win will help Mumbai’s chances of making it to the Season 8 playoffs while Bengal Warriors looks unlikely to get an opportunity to defend their title. 

The defences dominated the early minutes of the match with both Mumbai and Bengal taking an aggressive stance on the mat. Maninder Singh struggled to register a single point in the first 10 minutes as Mumbai took an early lead. But the defending champions shifted the balance of the match with a 3-point Super Raid by Manoj Gowda in the 11th minute. That gave Bengal the numerical advantage but Mumbai didn’t make the ALL OUT easy. Ajith Kumar kept finding errors in the Warriors defence while Rinku pulled off a stunning Super Tackle.

Bengal finally got their ALL OUT in the 17th minute when Maninder Singh evaded tackles from 2 defenders to cross the mid-line. That levelled the scores at 14-14. Maninder then clinched another 2-point raid to give Bengal a slender lead. But Mumbai captain Fazel Atrachali tackled Maninder successfully in the last move of the first half to send the Bengal captain to the dugout. At halftime, Bengal led by a solitary point (17-16).

Mumbai came all guns blazing in the second half and clinched an ALL OUT in the 5th minute. Their defenders were hungry with Fazel Atrachali leading the line and securing a personal High 5.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vn__9-JhVKk

Rinku also secured his High 5 as U Mumba gave Bengal Warriors no chance to even reduce the lead. They won the match with a margin of 10 points to increase their playoff chances. Bengal remain 11th on the table and are unlikely to qualify for the playoffs with just 2 matches remaining.

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