PKL 8: Naveen Kumar helps Delhi beat U Mumba; Bulls beat Thalaivas; Bengal register second straight win

PKL 8: Naveen Kumar helps Delhi beat U Mumba; Bulls beat Thalaivas in Southern Derby

Bengaluru, Dec 24: Dabang Delhi K.C. continued their winning streak as they registered their second win of VIVO Pro Kabaddi League Season 8 while Bengaluru Bulls tasted their first success of the season on Day 3 of the tournament held at The Sheraton Grand, Whitefield in Bengaluru on Friday (December 24). While defending champions Bengal Warriors registered their second straight win of the season with a slender three-point win over Gujarat Giants in the final game of the evening.

Naveen stars in Delhi's win:

Naveen Kumar starred for Dabang Delhi K.C. as they beat U Mumba 31-27 in the first match of Day 3. The star raider fetched 17 points in the night and was the big difference in a tightly fought contest that saw U Mumba lead for a long time.

The raiders including Naveen Kumar had a very slow start to the game with both sets of defenders keeping a high line and not even allowing Bonus Points. Vijay, who was impressed in his first match of the season for Dabang Delhi K.C., struggled to provide Naveen Kumar with the assistance, and the first half even saw Ajay Thakur make a few raids to change the momentum.

Mumbai raiders Abhishek Singh and Ajith Kumar had very little luck too and the scores were tied 5-5 after the first 10 minutes. Delhi changed gears towards the half-time, Naveen once again instrumental, and had reduced U Mumba to a man on the mat. But Mumbai's Anil Shivam clinched a raid point and then a Super Tackle, to keep Mumbai in the game.

The first half saw no ALL OUTS and ended 12 - 10 in Mumbai's favour. Anil Shivam and Abhishek Singh gave Mumbai a quick start in the second half which helped them inflict an ALL OUT in the 5th minute on Delhi and make the scores 19-10.

But Naveen was in no mood to let Mumbai run away with the lead and his multiple successful raids helped the Delhi side claim an ALL OUT in the 10th minute of the half to make the scores even at 20-20.

Naveen Kumar picked his SUPER 10 with 7 minutes remaining in the match and then followed it with a 3-point Super Raid that took the match away from U Mumba. Despite a few silly defensive errors from seniors Manjeet Chhillar and Jeeva Kumar, Delhi held firm in the last minutes to secure an important victory.

Bengaluru Bulls win Southern Derby

In the second match of the night, season 6 winners Bulls brushed past Tamil Thalaivas 38-30 in the southern derby. Captain Pawan Sehrawat picked up 9 points and was ably assisted by his raiding partners Chandran Ranjit (7 points) and Bharat (5 points) as the Bulls recovered from their Day 1 loss to win the Southern Derby against Tamil Thalaivas on Christmas eve.

The first half started with both defences looking strong and keeping a high line. Bulls' Pawan Sehrawat and Chandran Ranjit struggled to escape the strong arms of Thalaivas defenders. At the other end, K Prapanjan and Manjeet had a tough time against the Bulls defence left by Aman in the left corner.

The game's changing point in the first half was provided by Bharat, who took over the raiding duties of the Bulls after their top 2 struggled. His lanky army and reach caused troubles in the Thalaivas defence and helped the Bulls secure an ALL OUT in the 18th minute. The first half ended 19-13 with Bengaluru in the lead.

Kabaddi is a game of momentum and Tamil Thalaivas ensured it remained with them in the early minutes of the first half. Surjeet Singh and Sahil Singh produced stellar tackles on the Bulls raiders as raider Manjeet helped Thalaivas secure an ALL OUT in the 4th minute of the half and take the lead.

The teams traded blows and the scores were tied 21-25 with just 10 minutes in the match. But a combination of successful tackling and brave raiding by Chandran Ranjit gave the Bulls an ALL OUT with 7 minutes remaining to open up a 5-point lead. Despite Bhavani Rajput's valiant efforts with his raids, there was no comeback for Thaliavas. Bulls defender Saurabh Nandal secured his High 5 (5 tackle points) in the last move of the game.

Warriors register second straight win

Meanwhile, a late-night thriller saw the Bengal Warriors survive a late scare from the Gujarat Giants and win 31-28. Maninder Singh led his side with nine raid points, while all-rounder Rakesh Narwal was the Giants' top scorer with 12 points.

The first half was a cagey affair, with neither team letting the other pull away on the scoreboard. The defences suffocated the raiders for points, with only Rathan K and Maninder Singh finding success early in the game.

The contest finally came to life almost three-quarters of the way into the first half. The Giants managed to reduce the Warriors down to three through some stout defending, but two quick Super Tackles from Bengal's defence saw them build a slender lead. The Warriors' defence added a couple of more points to their team's tally, while a successful Do-or-die raid from Akash Pikalmunde saw the Giants reduced to just three on players on the mat and trailing by five at halftime.

The Giants managed to resist an All Out courtesy of a couple of raid points and a Super Tackle from their defence. But Mohammad Nabibakhsh came to the fore and broke the Giants' resistance, helping his side inflict the game's first All Out.

Trailing by six, the Giants' defence tried to force the issue, which allowed Maninder and Pikalmunde to pick up a few raid points. But raider Rakesh Narwal kept the deficit within grasp and his side in the game.

Raider Mahendra Rajput came off the bench to provide a late spark as the Giants cut the lead to just two points. With less than a minute left, captain Maninder Singh shouldered the responsibility of winning the game for his side, and he delivered, picking up a raid point that gave the Warriors a three-point cushion.

The Giants continued to try till the final whistle, but it wasn't to be, as the reigning champions maintained their perfect start to the campaign.

Post Match Presentation Highlights:

Match 7: U Mumba vs Dabang Delhi K.C.

VIVO PERFECT RAIDER OF THE MATCH - Naveen Kumar (Dabang Delhi K.C.)

TATA ACE DEFENDER OF THE MATCH - Joginder Singh Narwal (Dabang Delhi K.C.)

DREAM11 GAME CHANGER OF THE MATCH - Naveen Kumar (Dabang Delhi K.C.)

KARBONN MOMENT OF THE MATCH - Naveen Kumar (Dabang Delhi K.C.)

Match 8: Tamil Thalaivas vs Bengaluru Bulls

VIVO PERFECT RAIDER OF THE MATCH - Pawan Kumar Sehrawat (Bengaluru Bulls)

TATA ACE DEFENDER OF THE MATCH - Saurabh Nandal (Bengaluru Bulls)

DREAM 11 GAME CHANGER OF THE MATCH - Bharat (Bengaluru Bulls)

PARIMATCH NEWS MOMENT OF THE MATCH AWARD WINNER - Pawan Kumar Sehrawat (Bengaluru Bulls)