U.P. Yoddha emerged victorious in a riveting Pro Kabaddi League game that ebbed and flowed throughout the forty minutes. It all came down to the last second of the last raid where the Jaipur Pink Panthers had to inflict a super tackle to reduce the two-point deficit. Unfortunately for the Jaipur fans, the cooler head of Pradeep Narwal prevailed who suckered the defenders in and put in a super raid to help the Yoddha complete a 41-34 win.
The two teams were playing for a chance to break into the top four as they were placed fifth and sixth place respectively. Nitesh Kumar-led Yoddhas were coming off back-to-back victories and looked to carry on their momentum. Their counterparts, the Pink Panthers were coming off two straight losses and hoped for a better showing.
The first big moment in the match came when U.P’s star raider Pradeep Narwal was tackled by Sahul Kumar in his very first raid, courtesy of a strong ankle hold. After Narwal it was Surender Gill who was tackled to the ground, a double ankle hold proving to be his undoing. Arjun Deshwal struck in his do-or-die raid and the scoreline read 4-0 in favor of the Panthers.
Into the fourth minute of the match and U.P were yet to put a point on the leaderboard, an all-out looming nearby. It was around this point that substitute raider Ankush was granted a bonus and U.P was finally off the mark. A super tackle by U.P’s Ashu Singh brought the match to a 7-7 stalemate.
Surender Gill attempts to escape the tackle attempt from the Pink Panthers
U.P. were once again reduced to one man after Deepak Niwas Hooda enticed the right corner defender into going for an ankle hold but escaped. The all-out did take place following which we saw a different Pradeep Narwal. From that point, a Pradeep that would not stop until his team crossed the finishing line came to the fore.
It started with his raid in the thirteenth minute when he bulldozed and muscled through a Sandeep Dhull block. The force was so strong that the defender was dragged to U.P’s half. Two successive raids by Narwal and Gill saw the scoreline read 12-15.
Despite Narwal and Gill’s efforts, Jaipur kept chipping in with points and had a five-point lead just minutes before the end of the first half. The Panthers, however, withered away from the five-point lead and the two sides were separated by just one solitary point heading into the second half.
The Yoddha outfit came out all guns blazing and Narwal struck with a multi-point raid after the first half. For the first time in the match, U.P. had a lead, one which they would fight tooth and nail to protect. Shortly after, Deepak Hooda was restricted by a double thigh hold and the lead soared ahead. An unsuccessful raid by Hooda was followed by another failure in a do-or-die raid and the score was 25-28 in favor of Yoddha.
Gill and Narwal were working in tandem by then and it was an arm-wrestle between the two sides. A super raid by Narwal and a running kick from Surender Gill gave U.P. a two-point lead which was reduced to one point heading into the final minute of the match. The counterblow came from Deepak Hooda who had looked out of sorts in the second half until that point.
It all came down to the last minute with UP leading the score 35 to 33 in favor of UP. Jaipur Panthers had to go for the kill but Pradeep baited them in and the scoreline read 41-33 as the whistle rang, inflicting another all-out on Jaipur in the process. The game saw both Narwal and Deshwal pick 14 points each for their sides. Jaipur outshone U.P. in the defense department as they had 13 points to their name compared to UP’s 8 but a nine-point difference in raid points saw Yoddha seal the game.