The Telugu Titans led by the High Flyer Pawan Sehrawat, roared back from 9 points down at one stage, to swat aside the challenge from the Gujarat Giants, at the Badminton Hall, in the Balewadi Sports Complex, on Saturday, in PKL Season 11. The Telugu Titans who won 36-32 went one step closer to achieving qualification for the PKL Playoffs. For the Telugu Titans, Pawan Sehrawat scored 12 points, while Vijay Malik got 8 and Ashish Narwal added 6 more to the cause. Meanwhile Rakesh finished with 12 points and Guman Singh pocketed 9 for the Gujarat Giants.
Pawan Sehrawat Puts On a Masterclass as Telugu Titans Defeat Gujarat Giants; Inch Closer to Playoff Berth
The Gujarat Giants started off brilliantly they picked up an early lead but more importantly had accounted for Pawan Sehrawat and Vijay Malik off the first two plays of the game. The Telugu Titans were under pressure for a bit, but the ace raiders were back on the mat soon, as the Gujarat Giants conceded the advantage within the first five minutes.
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Ashish Narwal was leading the charge for the Telugu Titans, who continued to keep the pressure on their opponents. The Gujarat Giants’ defence were doing well to keep Pawan Sehrawat quiet, while Guman Singh and Rakesh were picking up crucial raids. Just before the first half was about to end, the Gujarat Giants landed an ALL OUT and picked up a 6-point lead, and were ending the half strongly. Guman then landed a two-point raid as well, and the Giants went into the break with the score at 18-11 in their favour.
The Gujarat Giants started off the second half strongly, continuing to build on the lead, and keep Pawan Sehrawat from going through the gears. Neeraj and Manuj in the Gujarat Giants defence were having a fine game, as was Guman Singh and Rakesh. Around the half-hour mark, Pawan Sehrawat flicked a switch, and the scored a flurry of important raids, which turned the game on its head. The Telugu Titans had snatched the momentum away from the Gujarat Giants, who though still led.
Soon after, the Telugu Titans scored an ALL OUT on their opponents, and then proceeded to wipe out the deficit. The Gujarat Giants were under pressure as the Telugu Titans had suddenly cranked up the intensity by a couple of notches, especially the skipper. With five minutes, left the High-Flyer Pawan Sehrawat registered his Super 10, as the Telugu Titans stormed into a 5-point lead.
Soon after the Telugu Titans landed a second ALL OUT and eventually went onto pick up morale-boosting win over the Gujarat Giants.
Another Super 10 for Ashu Malik helps Dabang Delhi K.C. humble Haryana Steelers in excellent victory
The raiding duo of Naveen Kumar and Ashu Malik once again made headlines as Dabang Delhi K.C. secured an impressive 44-37 victory over the Haryana Steelers at the Badminton Hall in the Balewadi Sports Complex. Ashu finished the match with an impressive 15 points to his name, while the Naveen Express scored seven. Among their defenders, Ashish Narwal scored a High 5 as Dabang Delhi K.C. moved to second on the points table.
The Haryana Steelers started strong as young raider Shivam Patare got five of five successful raids to give the PKL 10 finalists an early lead. He was ably supported by all-rounder Mohammadreza Shadloui, who first won two raid points and then tackled Naveen Kumar to complete the first ALL OUT of the match on Dabang Delhi K.C. in the seventh minute.
On the other side of the mat, Ashu Malik and Naveen Kumar found form and returned to their usual best. As the match seemed to be tilting in favour of the Haryana Steelers, the season 8 champion fought their way back by the end of the first half.
Yogesh led their defensive unit to prevent Shivam from scoring any points in a Do-Or-Die raid, while Ashu Malik and Naveen kept the pressure up. At the half-time whistle, an ALL OUT was inflicted on the Haryana Steelers, with the Dabang Delhi K.C. carrying a slender 20-18 into the break.
The pressure continued to mount on the Haryana Steelers, especially after Dabang Delhi K.C. inflicted a second ALL OUT on the Manpreet Singh-coached team. It took Dabang Delhi K.C. just three minutes into the second half to roll to a seven-point lead.
With a strong lead in their hands, Ashu Malik and Naveen Kumar went about their business as usual. A third ALL OUT was on the cards against the Haryana Steelers with six minutes left to the end of the game. Ashu Malik completed his 15th Super 10 of the season and also hit a double century in raid points in PKL 11, as his team went on the beat the table-toppers by 9 points and extend their unbeaten run to 12 matches.
