"UP Yoddha used that strategy" - Deepak Hooda reveals how he thought 1 step ahead of UP defenders in decisive do-or-die raid
Jaipur Pink Panthers captain Deepak Hooda performed brilliantly in the Pro Kabaddi 2021 game against UP Yoddha on Monday to help his team record a three-point victory.
Jaipur Pink Panthers had a one-point lead when Hooda went in for the buzzer raid. The interesting thing was that the raid was a do-or-die one, and if he failed, the match would have ended in a stalemate. The unfazed Deepak Hooda, however, pulled off a fantastic raid by scoring two touch points.
Speaking to reporters after the game, the Jaipur Pink Panthers skipper shared the details of his mindset before the final raid.
"Personally, about the do-or-die raid, I went in thinking that I will score one point because the goal was to make the team win," he said. "It does not matter if you win by one point or 10 points, a victory is a victory. And these close victories help teams a lot in the final phase of the league stage."
Earlier this season, UP Yoddha had a one-point lead against the Patna Pirates. They too faced a similar situation, and in that game, Surender Gill went in deep and took the bonus in the do-or-die raid before getting tackled. Patna lost that match by one point.
Deepak Hooda admitted that he watched that game and knew that UP Yoddha defenders would not allow him a bonus.
"I knew that if I go in deep for the bonus, all defenders will try to tackle me down," he explained. "UP Yoddha used that strategy against Patna Pirates. They took the bonus in the last raid and then the raider got tackled when they had a lead. So UP Yoddha's defenders were never going to allow me the bonus, which is why I tried for touch points."
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I prepared a special strategy for Pardeep Narwal along with the coach: Deepak Hooda
Jaipur Pink Panthers kept Pardeep Narwal under control in tonight's game. The Record Breaker managed to score only three points in the entire match.
Deepak Hooda revealed that he had prepared a special strategy for Pardeep along with the team's coach.
"It was very important us to win tonight," he said. "Talking about Pardeep Narwal, we watched him during his last two matches. I prepared a special strategy for Pardeep Narwal along with the coach. I believe that strategy was successful in tonight's match."
Jaipur Pink Panthers will play their next match against U Mumba on December 30. Deepak Hooda and Co. will be keen to complete a hat-trick of wins in PKL 8.