Players of Telugu Titans and Bengaluru Bulls in action on Saturday.
Hyderabad: The Telugu Titans fended off a resilient Bengaluru Bulls to secure a hard-fought 38-35 victory in the Pro Kabaddi League Season 11 clash at the GMCB Indoor Stadium, in Hyderabad on Saturday. Captain and star raider Pawan Sehrawat’s 14 points alongside Ajit Pawar’s high 5 was enough to clinch the home team’s second-straight win.
Pawan Sehrawat dominated the first half to help Telugu Titans take a massive lead. The hi-flyer’s super raid was followed by the first all-out of the match in the 11th minute, and Ashish Narwal added a second super raid to give the home side a sizeable advantage early in the game. The only reprieve for the Bulls were three super tackles, which took the score to 23-12 at the end of the first half.
With an 11-point deficit entering the second half, it was raider Ajinkya Pawar and defender Nitin Rawal who helped Bulls reduce the deficit with multiple successful moves. Nitin completed his high 5 and got the Titans all-out in the same move, while he was ably supported by Ajinkya Pawar, who found his feet and single-handedly won points for his side.
Pawan continued his form and reached a super 10, but Ajinkya’s raiding proved lethal as the second half went on. Coupled with Pankaj’s super raid, the Bulls got the home team all out for a second time as they reduced the deficit to just five points. The hard-fought comeback was not enough however, as the Bengaluru Bulls were just three points behind their opponents.