Dabang Delhi beat Gujarat Giants 41-22 in Pro-kabaddi

Bengaluru, Jan 29: A High 5 from Manjeet Chhillar and a brilliant all-round display from Sandeep Narwal helped Dabang Delhi K.C. register a 41-22 win over the Gujarat Giants and ascend to the top of the points table. Vijay also had a spectacular night, finishing the game with eight points. Delhi were up-and-running from the get-go and raced to a 5-1 lead with Vijay and the defence scoring a couple and Sandeep picking up a bonus. Vijay then delivered a three-point Super Raid that extended Delhi’s lead to six. With just two players left on the mat, the Giants were staring at an All Out, but all-rounder Hadi Oshtorak came off the bench to assist a Super Tackle on Sandeep and help his side cut the deficit to four. Delhi, though, were relentless and reduced the Giants to only Oshtorak with a tackle and touch points in successive raids. Delhi’s defence made no mistake in pinning down the all-rounder to inflict the game’s first All Out and take an eight-point lead. The two teams shared the following eight points evenly, but Delhi finished the half with a 4-1 surge to go into halftime, leading 22-11. The Giants started the second with a 3-0 run, but Delhi responded with three unanswered points of their own to retain their 11-point advantage. Sandeep and Krishan Dhull added two more points to Delhi’s total and leave the Giants with just a solitary man on the mat. Sunil Kumar made no attempt to tackle Sandeep and pushed the all-rounder past the midline to surrender a raid point which inflicted an All Out on Gujarat and extended Delhi’s lead to 16. Rakesh and Pardeep combined to add four unanswered points to the Giants’ total, and Girish Ernak made it five with a sensational Ankle Hold on Ashu Malik, as Gujarat reduced Delhi to just two players on the mat. But Delhi’s defence responded with two Super Tackles to keep the All Out at bay and regain their 15-point lead. Vijay and substitute Neeraj Narwal helped Delhi finish the game with a 7-3 run and register a comfortable win. UNI