Dabang Delhi pip U Mumba in Pro Kabaddi
Press Trust of India Pune A solid game in the second half saw Dabang Delhi edge past U Mumba 36-27 after both teams were separated by just two points at half time, in the Star Sports Pro Kabaddi league here today.
Table toppers U Mumba suffered their second successive defeat but still lead the league standings by seven points.
In what was a very tightly fought contest in the first 20 minutes of the game at the Balewadi Sports Complex, it ultimately was the Delhi team that emerged victorious. The second half saw Dabang Delhi rise to prominence, thanks to the invigorated gameplay of their defence, with UMumba trailing nine points behind.
The game started off with an equal display of talent from both teams. Mumbai's Anup Kumar and Delhi's Surjeet Narwal were scoring the majority of the points, but the rest of their teammates were no slouches either. The first 10 minutes saw terrific plays from Rishank Devadiga and Kashiling Adanke, setting the scores at 10-9, with Delhi barely holding the lead.
Neither of the two powerhouse teams were able to get the upper hand, with the Dabang defence taking out every other UMumba raider, and the UMumba defence responding in kind. The half-time scores were 12-14 in favour of Delhi.
The second half started off with a bonus from Anup, which brought the scores to 14-13, Delhi still leading. The teams carried on with their raids, but after failing to make up for a lost player through an empty raid, Mumbai found itself left with only four players to Delhi's six.
Unable to persevere with the lesser numbers, the Delhi team took them to their knees with the match's first all out, bringing the score to 23-17.