Dabang Delhi ride on Malik's Super 8 to tie Puneri Paltan, Deshwal powers Jaipur Pink Panthers

Ashu Malik, the stand-in skipper of Dabang Delhi K.C, scored 17 points including his eighth consecutive Super 10, to single-handedly help his team draw the match with Puneri Paltan at the Noida Indoor Stadium on Tuesday. The match ended at 38 all.

Puneri Paltan started in a dominating fashion as Akash Shinde took the responsibility of raiding without skipper Aslam Inamdar. The bright start was carried on by defenders Aman and Abinesh Nadarajan, who won crucial tackle points. Mohit Goyat inflicted the first ALL OUT of the match on the Dabang Delhi in the 10th minute but Ashu Malik, in the absence of Naveen Kumar, became the first raider to complete 100 raid points in PKL 11 while also keeping his team alive in the game.

Led by Ashu, the Dabang Delhi K.C. worked hard to mount a comeback, but the Puneri Paltan defensive duo of Aman and Abinesh showed their class with multiple Super Tackles to their name. Aman completed a well-earned High 5 in the first half itself, as the score read 13-21 in favour of Puneri Paltan at the end of the first half.

Ashu Malik went on to complete his Super 10 – his ninth in 10 games and eighth consecutive – at the start of the second half but support was lacking from his teammates. In comparison, the young guns of Puneri Paltan worked together and inflicted a second ALL OUT on the Dabang Delhi entering the final 10 minutes of the match.

Just when the match seemed to slip from the hands of Dabang Delhi, Malik turned up the heat. His Super Raid got Sanket Sawant, Mohit Goyat and Aman off the mat, also inflicting an ALL OUT on the Puneri Paltan, turning the tide of the match.

Deshwal scores 19, powers Jaipur Pink Panthers to win 

Arjun Deshwal led the Jaipur Pink Panthers to a 39-32 win over Bengaluru Bulls in the first match on Tuesday at the Noida Indoor Stadium on Tuesday. Arjun scored 19 points for the two-time PKL champions, with the second-highest scorer for the Jaipur Pink Panthers being Lucky Sharma, who completed a High 5 and eventually finished with six points to his name.

Bengaluru Bulls raider Ajinkya Pawar scored early points to give his team an important lead. Jatin then joined the party as the Bengaluru Bulls inflicted the first ALL OUT of the match on the Jaipur Pink Panthers just eight minutes into the game. Jaipur Pink Panthers skipper Deshwal carried his team, with seven early raid points, which was enough to keep his team afloat.

Slowly but surely, the Pink Panthers fought their way back into the game as the first half came to a close. With two minutes left at the end of the first half and the two teams separated by one point, Arulnanthababu pulled off a Super Tackle for the Bengaluru Bulls. It was a close game through the first half, and Deshwal completed his fourth Super 10 of the season as he got Arulnanthababu and then Jatin, to take the score to 19-17.

An ALL OUT inflicted by the Pink Panthers on the Bulls set the tone for the second half. Ajinkya, who completed 500 Raid Points in the PKL, kept up with his form, but the Bengaluru Bulls lost control of the match. On the other side of the mat, the raid machine for the Jaipur Pink Panthers –Deshwal – singlehandedly led the charge for his team.

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