Haryana Steelers yet again put up an all-round display as they beat Jaipur Pink Panthers 30-26 in the Pro Kabaddi League at Ranchi on Friday. Wazir Singh scored 10 points while Surender Nada secured five tackle points for the Steelers. The Pink Panthers were let down by their defence as they made too many errors and allowed Steelers to pick up raid points at will, PTI reported.
Steelers remain second in the Zone A table with 54 points from 17 matches. The Pink Panthers are fifth with 36 points from 12 matches. The Pink Panthers sent Surjeet Singh to the bench early in the contest, and marched to a 11-8 lead. However, the Steelers provided an immideate response, scoring four points in two minutes as they went into the break level with the Pink Panthers at 12-12.
The second half began with both teams scoring two tackles point each to level the match at 14-14 in the 24th minute. The Steelers then took control in the 25th minute as Ashish Chhokar scored with a two-point raid to give them 17-14 lead. In the 27th minute, Steelers inflicted an all-out to open a substantial six-point lead.
Pawan Kumar tried to take Pink Panthers back in the game as he came up with a super raid in the 32nd minute. But yet again, the Steelers hit back quickly just when the Pink Panthers tried to snatch the momentum. Pink Panthers ended the game on a fine note, scoring four points in the last couple of minutes, but were unable to close down the deficit.
UP Yoddha stumble over the line
The UP Yoddha-Patna Pirates match was expected to be a high-scoring contest. The raids came in droves and the two marquee players from either sides, Pardeep Narwal and Nitin Tomar, produced thrilling displays. However, an inspired Yoddha outfit managed to keep their opponents at bay. The defending champions lost 46-41, their first defeat at home this season. So far, only Gujarat Fortunegiants have an unblemished home record.
The Pirates side, who picked up an impressive run of form recently, were unable to cope with Tomar and Rishank Devadiga, who amassed 31 points between them. Tomar top-scored with 18, which included 16 raid points. The in-form Pardeep Narwal was once again impressive, getting 13 points on the board, but it wasn’t enough to lift the Pirates against a rampant outfit.