Ashu, Sandeep shine as Dabang Delhi complete double over Jaipur Pink Panthers

Chennai, Oct 6 (PTI) Dabang Delhi continued their fine run in the Pro Kabaddi League, notching up a thrilling 29-26 win over defending champions Jaipur Pink Panthers to become the first team to reach 20 points this season here on Monday.

Sandeep stood tall for Delhi with a High Five, picking up seven tackle points, while skipper Ashu Malik contributed eight raid points.

For Jaipur, Reza Mirbagheri and Deepanshu Khatri also recorded High Fives, while Aryan Kumar chipped in with four tackle points, but their efforts weren’t enough to turn the game around.

Malik set the tone with a Super Raid to open their account with a three-point lead. Khatri registered the Panthers’ first point with a tackle, and it was their defence that ensured that they stayed in the contention during the early exchanges.

Fazel Atrachali bagged his first tackle to help Dabang Delhi hold onto a two-point lead, before a couple of tackles from Aryan, followed by a raid from Meetu levelled the score.

An ankle hold from Khatri gave the Pink Panthers their first lead of the night, concluding the first quarter with the score at 6-5.

The defences slowly began to take charge of the contest with the tempo slowing down.

Sandeep registered four tackles in the first half, while Ajinkya Pawar’s multi-point raid retained a two-point lead for the table-toppers. However, the closing stages of the half belonged to Reza Mirbagheri, who executed a couple of Super Tackles to complete his High Five, giving Pink Panthers a 13-12 lead at half time.

The teams continued to trade blows with defenders dictating terms in this engaging contest. Vinay bagged a two-point raid to give the Pink Panthers the lead again, before Malik secured a two-point raid of his own, registering the first ALL OUT of the game to help Delhi get their noses in front again.

Sandeep completed his High Five with a couple of tackles, while Pawar also chipped in to help the Joginder Narwal-led side establish a five-point lead. The tackles continued to fly in as Khatri completed his High Five.

Despite not having his most efficient performance, Malik continued to chip away to ensure Delhi hold onto their four-point lead with five minutes to go. A tackle by Saurabh Nandal built on that lead, but a Super Tackle by Aashish Kumar reduced the deficit back to three points for Jaipur Pink Panthers.

A Super Tackle by Aryan gave Jaipur an opportunity with only a point separating the two sides. In the end, Neeraj Narwal came in clutch with a tackle on Ali Samadi and then wrapped up proceedings with the final raid of the game, ensuring the table-toppers complete the double over their opponents. PTI ATK TAP