Services stayed on course for a fourth straight title in men’s Kabaddi, beating Tamil Nadu 45-31 for its second victory at the 36th National Games in Ahmedabad on Tuesday.
Maharashtra women too posted their second win in Group A, scoring a 46-22 victory over host Gujarat to build on the thrilling 32-31 win over national champions Himachal Pradesh.
In a gripping contest, Services’ men saw Tamil Nadu fight back from 12-19 down at half-time to 27-30. That was when Services upped the ante and cruised to what proved to be a comfortable victory, pleasing coach Narendra Kumar.
“We will miss Navin Kumar who is injured. That is a concern. Other than that, it has been a good journey so far,” Kumar said.
“Tamil Nadu played very well, especially in the middle of the second half when they came close to us. But I am happy that we held our nerves and went on to secure a good win.” Similarly, Maharashtra coach Sanjay was pleased with the effort of his women players.
“The girls are playing well. We are almost there in the semifinals. We want to win the last league game (against Bihar) and that will help us go into the knockout stage in a great frame of mind. We want to win gold with a clean slate,” he said.
Meanwhile, in the netball competition in Bhavnagar, Gujarat men stayed on course for a semifinal berth and medal with an emphatic 53-38 victory over Madhya Pradesh in their second Group A clash.
The hosts, who had lost a close opening round clash against national champion Haryana, dominated Madhya Pradesh in the first three quarters before easing off.
Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh both have two points each with a win and a loss.
In the final Group A league clash, Gujarat will face fourth-placed Punjab while Madhya Pradesh takes on Haryana.
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