A terrific first half performance by UP Yoddha saw them beat Tamil Thalaivas 37-32 in Vivo Pro Kabaddi Season VI. Prashant Kumar Rai (8 points) led the Yoddha’s scoring chart while Narender did the damage with his tackles. Tamil Thalaivas’ defence let them down in the first half. Ajay Thakur scored 12 points for Tamil Thalaivas but it just wasn’t enough.
UP Yoddhas began the match with bang as for the first 10 minutes they dominated Tamil Thalaivas and didn’t allow them to score a single point. In the 9th minute UP Yoddha inflicted the first all out to lead 10- 0. UP Yoddha defence did a fine job on Tamil Thalaivas raiders and didn’t allow Ajay Thakur and Jasvir Singh to score any points.
Tamil Thalaivas finally opened their account in the 13th minute as Manjeet Chhillar got a tackle point. Ajay Thakur then followed it up with Thalaivas’ first raid point as they trailed 2-12.
It was a totally one-sided affair in the first half as UP Yoddha led 18-4 at the break. None of Thalaivas’ players got going as they failed to match the intensity of UP Yoddha.
It was perhaps the fatigue of last night’s encounter that was showing but Thalaivas were looking listless. On the other hand, UP Yoddha were looking fitter and sharper, especially their defenders Sagar Krishna and Jeeva Kumar.
UP Yoddha started the second half on the same dominant note as they inflicted another all out to lead 23-5. Prashant Kumar Rai scored with a two-point raid in the 22nd minute to open a 20-point gap.
Athul MS scored with a two-point raid in the 28th minute as Tamil Thalaivas reduced the deficit to 16 points. Silly mistakes did cost Tamil Thalaivas as they lost three technical points.
The brave moment of the match came in the 31st minute when Ajay Thakur scored with a two-point raid as Thalaivas inflicted an all out to cut the gap to nine points. For a moment it looked like Thalaivas might do the impossible and it was down to Thakur’s brilliance and bravery.
However, UP Yoddha maintained their composure and didn’t give too many opportunities to Thalaivas to make a comeback.
Ajay Thakur achieved a super 10 in the 38th minute as Tamil Thalaivas trailed 26-33. Tamil Thalaivas inflicted an all out in the 29th minute as they trailed 30-34. UP Yoddha held on in the dying minutes as they won 37-32.
In tomorrow’s matches, Dabang Delhi will take on Gujarat Fortunegiants whereas Tamil Thalaivas will face Telugu Titans.
