Pro Kabaddi League 2018, Match 44: UP Yoddha vs Tamil Thalaivas | Match Preview and Predicted Line-ups
UP Yoddha start their home leg with a match against the Tamil Thalaivas at the Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex in Greater Noida. The Yoddhas would look to go to the top of Zone B standings with a win, while the Thalaivas would give it their all to secure their third win of the season.
The Yoddhas are in good form with back-to-back wins and would look to make it three in a row with a win in tonight's encounter. Their win against the Dabangs, that too in the absence of their captain, Rishank Devadiga, shows the mettle of the team.
Prashant Kumar Rai and Shrikant Jadhav have been truly exceptional, and with their defense slowly starting to click, they have become a formidable nature of force.
The only concern remaining is Sagar Krishna's inconsistency in the defense, and need to be sorted out soon.
They would most likely start with the same lineup that they had against the Dabangs with the only change in the form of the return of Rishank to the fold in place of Rohit Kumar Choudhary.
The Thalaivas, on the other hand, have been the most inconsistent side in all of Pro Kabaddi League Season 6. They have just managed to win 2 matches out of the 8 that they have featured in.
Their inconsistency in defense is now starting to slowly rub off into their attack as well. Their 11-point defeat against the Gujarat Fortunegiants in their last encounter was proof enough of the inability of their attack to score points against a well-coordinated defense.
It's shocking to see why Sukesh Hegde and Jasvir Singh are favored in the starting lineup ahead of Athul MS who has displayed his exciting talent in whatever little opportunities that he has been given.
Their defense has its own share of problems, the major being lack of coordination among the ranks. A team with Manjeet Chhillar and Amit Hooda was expected to be among the top teams in the defensive standings, but they are at the bottom position with an abysmal average tackle point score of 8.25 per match.
They need to replace Darshan J as soon as possible as he has been ineffective throughout the campaign.
Key Battles to keep an eye on:
#1 Prashant Kumar Rai (left raider) vs Manjeet Chhillar (left cover)
#2 Ajay Thakur (right raider) vs Sagar Krishna (left corner)
Probable playing 7:
UP Yoddha: Rishank Devadiga (c), Prashant Kumar Rai, Shrikant Jadhav, Narender, Amit, Nitesh Kumar, and Sagar Krishna
Tamil Thalaivas: Ajay Thakur (c), Sukesh Hegde, Jasvir Singh, Manjeet Chhillar, Darshan J, Sunil, and Amit Hooda
When and where to watch: 20:00 IST on the Star Sports network and on the digital streaming platform, Hotstar