Noida, Nov 23 (IANS): Super performance by Parteek Dahiya helped Gujarat Giants earn their third win of the season, a 31-28 verdict against Telugu Titans in a nail-biting contest in Season 11 of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) at the Noida Indoor Stadium here on Saturday. Dahiya registered his second Super 10 in as many games to overcome Vijay Malik’s 15-point performance, as the two teams played out a close contest.
The raiders for both sides started the game on the front foot, getting on the scoreboard without much of a fuss. However, the two defensive units kept things in the balance in the opening exchanges. Parteek got the first Do-or-Die Raid six minutes into the game and followed it up with another, helping Gujarat Giants stay ahead in the first quarter of the game.
Guman Singh executed a remarkable two-point raid moments later to further bolster Gujarat Giants’ momentum. They had a three-point lead as Guman Singh and Parteek Dahiya continued to show their raiding prowess before Vijay Malik single-handedly kept the Telugu Titans in the game.
As the lone man on the mat, he scored two raid points to give his team two revivals and completed his Super 10 in the first half itself. That helped Telugu Titans level the score, and they carried on that momentum to move into the lead as Ashish Narwal executed a Super Raid, closing out the half with a score of 17-15.
The Gujarat Giants regained their lead with Parteek finding his groove with a two-point raid, finally helping his side register an ALL OUT on the opposition. It wasn’t the best of nights for the Telugu Titans defenders with only one tackle point in the first half, but they got themselves together and kept their team in the game.
Vijay Malik carried on his inspirational run, getting a successful Do-or-Die Raid, helping Telugu Titans close the gap to two points with under 10 minutes to go in the game. With the game going to the wire, Gujarat Giants tried to slow down the tempo of the game. Dahiya completed his Super 10, ensuring that his side clung onto their narrow one-point lead with under 5 minutes to go.
Telugu Titans kept their foot on the pedal with a tackle from Ajit Pawar on a Do-or-Die Raid for Gujarat Giants. They eventually managed to level things up at 26 points each, with under two minutes to go in the game, setting up a grand finish to the game.
With the clock running down, Gujarat Giants couldn’t have picked a better time to inflict a Super Tackle on Vijay Malik, getting themselves a two-point lead. The Telugu Titans narrowed down the lead to a point again, giving themselves a chance to win with the final raid of the game. However, it was Himanshu Singh who came in clutch for Gujarat Giants, executing a Super Tackle on Parteek Dahiya to seal the deal for his side.