The two Pro Kabaddi matches played on Wednesday at the Babu Banarasi Das Indoor Stadium in Lucknow threw up contrasting results. The Zone A match between Haryana Steelers and Dabang Delhi KC saw the former team get their third win in the tournament. The Zone B clash between UP Yoddhas and Tamil Thalaivas saw both opponents settle for a tense tie.
Playing first, the Steelers defeated Dabang Delhi 27-25, thanks to seven points claimed by raider Deepak Dahiya. In total, the Steelers overpowered their opponents by winning 16 raid points to 14. The Steelers are currently placed second in the Zone A points table with three wins, one loss and two ties.
In the second match of the day, playing at home against the Tamil Thalaivas, the Yoddhas got out of their four-match losing rut to get a tie. Both teams finished with 33 points apiece to bring up the sixth tie of the fifth edition of the league.
Earlier, it was the hosts who posted a comfortable 14-3 lead over their opponents in the initial moments of the first-half. However, the Thalaivas bounced back in the game to narrow their deficit to just eight points at 19-11 at the end of the first half. The second half was far more tumultous.
However, the Yoddhas took the lead once again by the barest of margins during the last few minutes to go up 33-31 thanks to raider Rishank Devadiga scoring two back-to-back points.
However, any hope that the Yoddhas had of winning their first home match was squashed as the Thalaivas staged one final comeback to level the match in the final few seconds, securing a tackle point from Vineet Kumar’s raid.
Despite their draw, the Yoddhas continued to retain their place atop the Zone B points table with three wins, five losses and two ties.