Versatility serving Telugu Titans well in Star Sports Pro Kabaddi

Rahul Chaudhari

The Telugu Titans got off to a shaky start at their home venue, an edgy tie against the Pink Panthers underlining their tentativeness in the first game of the Hyderabad leg. The induction of Hadi Oshtorak on the right corner and Meraj Sheykh into the team saw the Titans dissolve into a certain degree of chaos midway through the game against the team from Jaipur.

But then the Titans are a team with a strong compliment of coaching professionals – Manager Jagmohan, Coach Udaya Kumar and Assistant Coach Srinivas Reddy wasted no time in analyzing the mistakes of the first game and hatch new plans.

A practice session in the morning helped cement a few plans for the renewed lineup that made space for the two most expensive players of the second edition of the league. The Titans draw their strength from the offensive strength of Rahul Chaudhari and Sukesh Hegde.

Teenager Sandeep has been nothing short of a revelation. Just 18, the young lad has nearly turned into an anchor on the floor for the Titans. The team management learnt quickly from the drawn game on Tuesday that meddling with a settled lineup could have a detrimental effect on the morale of the team.

Titans showed they can compete with U Mumba in the second match

The second game against the Bengal Warriors proved to be a far more balanced affair. The team seemed far more settled on Wednesday. Meraj alternated between working independently in the middle, with Deepak back in his familiar role supporting Sandeep, who continued his impressive work on the left corner.

Hadi too seemed far more composed and calm in his second outing here, willing to be far more patient today than he was against the Panthers. Unfortunately for the Titans, Hadi had to leave the field when he sprained his heavily strapped left knee.

But that did not deter the Titans, who dominated the Warriors with ease. The Titans defences came apart on Tuesday, allowing the Panthers to recover from an eight-point deficit in the first game. The presence of Rajaguru Subramanian in the middle and on the right provided some added stability to the Titans.

If they continue to play as well as they did here against the Warriors, U Mumba, who are top of the league table, could finally have a team in the league that could challenge their dominance.