Pro Kabaddi 8: Jaipur Pink Panthers end Naveen's super 10 streak, Dabang Delhi's unbeaten run; Thalaivas thrash Steelers by 19 points

Jaipur Pink Panthers upset league leaders Dabang Delhi K.C. in a closely contested match in the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL 8) on Monday while Tamil Thalaivas beat Haryana Steelers in a one-sided encounter.

Raider Deepak Niwas Hooda scored nine raid points for Jaipur Pink Panthers in their 30-28 win over Dabang Delhi K.C. on Monday.

Jaipur Pink Panthers outclassed Dabang Delhi K.C. 30-28 in a closely contested Match 46 of the Pro Kabaddi League Season 8 on Monday.

Naveen Kumar and Arjun Deshwal, who were both on Super 10 streaks for their respective teams, failed to cross the milestone in the tactical warfare. But coach Sanjeev Baliyan and his Jaipur team had the last laugh with Sahul Kumar picking up a High 5 (8 tackle points) and Deepak Hooda getting 9 raid points.

Delhi’s unbeaten run in Season 8 came to an end as the lack of a secondary raider to assist the prolific Naveen Kumar proved too costly.

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The first half was a cagey affair with both Naveen Kumar and Arjun Deshwal failing to produce any moment of raiding magic. Delhi started the better side with their experienced defensive line-up charged up for the match. By the 10th minute, they had managed to reduce Jaipur to just 3 men on the mat. But Sahul Kumar produced a Super Tackle to swing the match in the Panthers’ favour.

Both sides matched each other in an intense end to the half that saw Naveen survive two injury scares. The scores were 12-12 at the interval with both sides failing to inflict an All Out.

Delhi started the second half brightly and got an All Out in the 5th minute. Their 5-point lead did not last long however, with Jaipur’s defence finding form. Sahul Kumar raced to his High 5 as Jaipur ensured the scores were level at the Time Out in the 10th minute. Deepak Hooda was in good form for the Panthers as they pushed for an All Out on Delhi and take the lead. But Delhi held firm with Ashu Malik managing a Super Tackle.

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Delhi had a 4-point going into the last 5 minutes, but Jaipur’s Deepak Hooda finally got a 2-point raid that ultimately paved the way for an All Out. The momentum helped the Panthers take the lead in the final minutes and win the match, ending Delhi’s unbeaten streak.

Tamil Thalaivas thrashed Haryana Steelers by 19 points

An in-form Tamil Thalaivas beat Haryana Steelers 45-26 in the first game of the evening to climb up to fourth spot on the points table.

Thalaivas began the match with high intensity and quickly took a 20-7 inflicting two All Outs in the process on Haryana. However, the Steelers made a spirited comeback courtesy of skipper Vikash Kandola to reduce the deficit to 18-24 at half-time.

Learning from their errors in the first half, Thalaivas came out all guns blazing in the second half and simply blew the Steelers away during which they inflicted two more All Outs. Raider Manjeet scored a Super 10 for Thalaivas but the most impressive part of the match was their defense as skipper Surjeet and Sagar picked up eight and seven tackle points respectively.