CHENNAI, 27th December: Dabang Delhi K.C. and defending champions Jaipur Pink Panthers played out a nail-biting 32-32 tie in the Pro Kabaddi League Season 10 match at the SDAT Multipurpose Indoor Stadium in Chennai on Wednesday. Ashu Malik was the star for Dabang Delhi K.C. with 7 raid points on the night.
MATCH CENTRE
https://www.prokabaddi.com/matchcentre/3071-scorecard
Dabang Delhi dominated the proceedings and it took them only 8 minutes to inflict the first ALL OUT. The defence collectively pounced on Ajith Kumar and the side soared to a 10-4 lead. They coasted along and maintained their lead, but Naveen’s injury in the 14th minute was a cause of concern. The injury notwithstanding, Dabang Delhi continued their dominance on the mat and got a second ALL OUT in the 17th minute to lead 20-10.
Jaipur Pink Panthers’ star raider Arjun Deshwal could not manage a single touchpoint in the first half, while the Dabang Delhi defenders enjoyed a 100% tackle strike rate and led 23-11 at the break.
Ashu Malik took over the raiding responsibilities in Naveen’s absence and did well on his part, but the Jaipur Pink Panthers upped the tempo in the second half. Arjun picked up a handful of bonus points, while Ankush showcased one of the best defensive performances of the season. Operating from the left corner, he brought the Pink Panthers within 6 points of the Delhi side when he executed a perfect tackle on Manjeet. That tackle saw him complete a High 5 and the scoreline read 26-20 in Delhi’s favour with 10 minutes to go.
Arjun saved his best for the final few minutes as he got multiple raid points before deploying a superb ankle hold on Vishal Bhardwaj to inflict an ALL OUT. With a little over 5 minutes left, the Pink Panthers trailed by 3 points at 29-26.
Arjun then got a touch on Manjeet a minute later to level the scores at 29-29 and the Pink Panthers made a remarkable comeback to erase a 13-point deficit. It appeared like Delhi would sneak away with a narrow win, but an error from Vikrant, who stepped out of bounds before making a tackle, in the dying stages of the game saw the Pink Panthers get a point and level the scores again at 32-32. Thereafter, Ashu Malik decided to run down the clock and settle for a tie.
Game 1 – Patna Pirates vs Haryana Steelers – 8 pm
Game 2 – U.P. Yoddhas vs Bengaluru Bulls – 9 pm
Venue: Noida
