Pro Kabaddi League 2018, Match 73; Gujarat Fortunegiants vs Dabang Delhi KC, Player Ratings
The action continued on at the Ahmedabad leg of the Pro Kabaddi League 2018 as the home side Gujarat Fortunegiants took to the mat against the Dabang Delhi KC at the Arena by Transstadia in Gujarat with an aim to continue their unbeaten run of nine matches.
Gujarat Fortunegiants came into this match on the run of a stellar nine-match unbeaten streak with just one draw. The raiding has been led by the dynamic Sachin Tanwar who has been backed by a strong defensive lineup.
The cover combination of the captain Sunil Kumar and Parvesh Bhainswal has done well along with the young corner duo of Sachin Vittala and Ruturaj Koravi. Dong Geon Lee has gained the trust of the coach Manpreet Singh and started tonight alongside Rohit Gulia.
Dabang Delhi KC came into this match with a loss against the Patna Pirates but have looked in good touch all-around on the mat. The raiding unit has seen the young partnership of Chandran Ranjit and Naveen Kumar flourish. Their defence is led by the experienced veteran Joginder Narwal along with the likes of Ravinder Pahal, Vishal Mane and Rajesh Narwal.
The first half of the match was a close-knit affair on the mat as the Dabang Delhi KC side put up a strong fight against the in-form home side. The defence managed to keep the star raider of the Gujarat Fortunegiants, Sachin Tanwar quiet picking up just two points.
Dong Geon Lee played his part in the absence of the lead raider and kept picking up points with his tenacious raiding. Parvesh Bhainswal picked up a Super Tackle with a strong thigh hold and had four points at the end of the first half as Gujarat led 13-11 with twenty minutes to play.
The second half was a highly exciting turn of events as Dabang Delhi KC kept the home side on their toes keeping on the heels. Meraj Sheykh turned on the heat on Gujarat as he cleaned out the entire lineup with a stunning Super Raid to score five points.
Dabang Delhi KC left it right till the end and a Super Tackle by Naveen Kumar in the last raid on Sachin Tanwar secured the win for them. Gujarat Fortunegiants lost their first match on home turf in two seasons and this was an end of their unbeaten run in the 26-29 scoreline.
Here are the player ratings for this clash:
Gujarat Fortunegiants
Sunil Kumar - (4/10)
The Gujarat Fortunegiants skipper orchestrated the proceedings on the mat for the home side. He finished with three tackle point with strong ankle holds from the cover position.
Parvesh Bhainswal - (7/10)
The cover defender was in top form tonight as he picked up four tackle points in the first half including one Super Tackle. He picked up the High 5 in the second half and was the second-highest scoring player for the Fortunegiants.
Ruturaj Koravi - (2/10)
The right corner defender attempted a lot of tackles tonight but did not have any success with tackle points but did get some assists.
Sachin Vittala - (3/10)
The young defender locked in a solid back hold in the first half on Naveen Kumar and was quite active in the backline.
Dong Geon Lee - (4/10)
The Korean raider started again tonight and picked up three raid points early on in the match. He was substituted in the second half of the match when Mahendra Rajput stepped in.
Rohit Gulia - (2/10)
The raider was started tonight after a couple of appearances off the bench but picked up just one bonus point tonight.
Sachin Tanwar - (8/10)
The star raider was the top scorer for the home side tonight but was kept in check by the Gujarat defence. He had nine points in the end, including a Super Tackle in the second half of the match.
Substitutes:
Mahendra Ganesh Rajput - (2/10)
The lanky raider came on in the second half of the match and picked up one raid point.
Hadi Oshtorak - (2/10)
The all-rounder was put in towards the end of the match and had one tackle point to his name.