Ahmedabad, Dec 3 (IANS): Gujarat Giants' head coach Ram Mehar Singh has praised the contribution of raider Sonu and his Iranian defender duo Fazel Atrachali and Mohammad Nabibakhsh for his team's opening day win over Telugu Titans in Season 10 of Pro Kabaddi League (PKL).

Gujarat Giants got off to a flying start through a 38-32 victory over Telugu Titans at the EKA Arena by TransStadia on Saturday.

Speaking about their victory, coach Ram Mehar Singh said, “A win is great, but I thought we could have played better. Sonu played very well and changed the game for us. The defence unit made a lot of mistakes. The raiders other than Sonu could've also put up a better performance.”

The Gujarat Giants' coach lauded the Iranian duo on the Gujarat side. “Fazel Atrachali and Mohammad Nabibakhsh's Super Tackles against Pawan Sehrawat were the turning points of the game. Fazel and Nabibakhsh form a great combination. Whenever Pawan was trying to attain a bonus point, both were ready to tackle him.”

Meanwhile, U Mumba registered a 34-31 victory over U.P. Yoddhas in the second match on Saturday. When asked about the team’s performance, U Mumba’s head coach Gholamreza Mazandarani said, “There are a lot of new players in the team. The players didn't have the time to get to know each other before the tournament. Nevertheless, all the young athletes played very well. They can certainly get better as the tournament progresses. However, I think we'll take time to form our best combination.”

All-rounder Amirmohammad Zafardanesh was the star of the match for U Mumba on the opening day of PKL Season 10. He effected fantastic raids and scored a total of 12 points in the game.

Speaking about him, Mazandarani said, “Amirmohammad's reaction time is terrific. He's a really good player for us. We have another Iranian Heidarali Ekrami, who's also a good player, but we'll choose our team combinations according to the opposition we play.”