Naveen Kumar again secured a Super 10, his third in three Season 8 matches, but Delhi was fortunate to escape with a tie.
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A last-second error by experienced defender Ravinder Pahal allowed Dabang Delhi’s Naveen Kumar to secure a raid point and tie Gujarat Lions 24-24 in the Pro Kabaddi League on Sunday. Delhi’s star raider once again secured a Super 10 (11 points), his third in three Season 8 matches – but the team was fortunate to escape with a tie after another game marred by defensive gaffes.
Gujarat will only have themselves to blame after Rakesh Sanrogya and Rakesh Narwal gave them a chance to beat the Season 7 runners-up. Despite the focus on Gujarat’s defence, the raiders scored the most points for the Giants in a close first half.
Point-point pe likha tha lene waale ka naam ?
What a game we’ve had! #GGvDEL ends in a thrilling tie.#SuperhitPanga #vivoProKabaddi pic.twitter.com/XrdWt6LZlB
— ProKabaddi (@ProKabaddi) December 26, 2021
Rakesh Narwal and Rakesh Sanrogya exploited weak points in the Delhi defence, which started seniors Ajay Thakur and Manjeet Chhillar despite their limited contributions in previous games. Naveen Kumar of Delhi made sure the Gujarat Giants didn’t get out to an early lead, scoring three points in his first three raids while sending the covers Girish Ernak and Ravinder Pahal to the dugout.
Only one successful tackle was seen in the first 15 minutes, from both sides. There were no All Outs in the first half, which ended with Dabang Delhi winning 12-11.
In the early minutes of the second half, the teams continued to trade blows. Gujarat had no answers for Naveen Kumar’s raids, but Delhi’s defence continued to crumble as a result of failed tackles from Manjeet Chhillar and Jeeva Kumar. In the fifth minute of the half, Naveen clinched his Super 10, his third in three Season 8 matches.
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With less than 10 minutes left on the clock, the Gujarat defence finally managed to get Naveen Kumar out. Rakesh Sanrogya and Rakesh Narwal’s brilliant raiding kept the Giants in touch with Delhi.
Vijay, on the other hand, quickly revived Naveen Kumar with a touch point and followed it up with an effective charge on Rakesh to give Delhi a slender lead in the 14th minute of the second half.
Rakesh’s effective kick had given Gujarat a one-point lead going into the final raid, but a blunder by Ravinder Pahal, who went in for an early thigh hold on Naveen Kumar, tied the game.
