Gujarat Giants defeated U Mumba 36-33 in the 131st match of Pro Kabaddi Season 8. The most effective player of the match for the Gujarat Giants was Rakesh Sangroya. He was ably supported by Mahendra Ganesh Rajput. V. Ajith Kumar's efforts went in vain tonight.
Coach Manpreet Singh will be delighted with this win as it takes his team to the 4th spot on the points table with 67 points. This loss leaves U Mumba in the 10th spot with 55 points.
Gujarat Giants were behind in the raiding department scoring 21 points to U Mumba 23. When it came to tackling Gujarat Giants scored 10 points to U Mumba 7 points. Gujarat Giants cleaned up the opposition into 2 All-Outs. And that made all the difference.
The mainstay of the Gujarat Giants was Rakesh Sangroya staying on the mat for 95% of the raids and scoring 13 points.
It was a cat and mouse game between the two sides, with teams trading points and lead changing sides 1 times over the game. But the game changed in the 79th raid when Harendra Kumar scored a valuable 1 points to swing the momentum in favour of the Gujarat Giants.
Gujarat Giants were simply superior in the raiding department led by Rakesh Sangroya
Rakesh Sangroya scored 13 raid points and he was supported by Mahendra Ganesh Rajput with 6 points. Rakesh Sangroya kept picking points to keep the U Mumba at bay.
V. Ajith Kumar delivered for the U Mumba with 11 points, but it was not sufficient on the day against the Gujarat Giants. U Mumba scored a total of 23 raid points and their raiders were tackled 20 times.
Gujarat Giants scored when mattered
The teams were well-matched in both raiding and defence, but the Gujarat Giants picked points when it mattered. Eventually, they sent U Mumba for 2 all-outs but conceded just 1. And that helped them get a sufficient lead to run away with the match.
Key Moments in the Match
| Raid 1 | GJ 0 - 0 UM | Abhishek Singh (UM) | Abhishek Singh is risking his team into a Do-or-Die Raid. Risky Strategy! |
| Raid 2 | GJ 2 - 0 UM | Ajay Kumar (GJ) | Ajay raids successfully and gets Rahul Sethpal, Fazel Atrachali out. |
| Raid 13 | GJ 6 - 4 UM | Shivam (UM) | Shivam brings U Mumba 2 points. |
| Raid 14 | GJ 10 - 4 UM | Rakesh Sangroya (GJ) | Rakesh Sangroya muscles his way past Shivam, Rahul Sethpal and picks up the point of the game. |
| Raid 23 | GJ 12 - 8 UM | Shivam (UM) | Shivam eliminates Hadi with a Dubki. |
| Raid 32 | GJ 15 - 11 UM | Rakesh Sangroya (GJ) | Rakesh Sangroya locks horns with Rahul Sethpal, Fazel Atrachali, but manages to get across the line. |
| Raid 34 | GJ 18 - 11 UM | Rakesh Sangroya (GJ) | Rakesh Sangroya gets the better of Rinku Hari, Shivam. |
| Raid 37 | GJ 19 - 14 UM | V. Ajith Kumar (UM) | V. Ajith Kumar locks horns with Girish Ernak, but manages to get across the line. |
| Raid 39 | GJ 23 - 14 UM | Rakesh Sangroya (GJ) | Rakesh Sangroya eliminates Rahul Sethpal with a Hand Touch. |
| Raid 47 | GJ 25 - 15 UM | Pradeep Kumar (GJ) | Pradeep Kumar has been taken down! |
| Raid 56 | GJ 29 - 19 UM | V. Ajith Kumar (UM) | Girish Ernak, Pradeep Kumar errs and has to go back to the bench and it's another point for V. Ajith Kumar. |
| Raid 58 | GJ 29 - 22 UM | Shivam (UM) | Shivam muscles his way past P Bhainswal, Sunil Kumar and picks up the point of the game. |
| Raid 60 | GJ 30 - 26 UM | V. Ajith Kumar (UM) | V. Ajith Kumar gets the better of Soleiman Pahlevani, Hadi. |
| Raid 61 | GJ 32 - 26 UM | Mahendra Ganesh Rajput (GJ) | Mahendra muscles his way past Rahul Sethpal, Harendra Kumar and picks up the point of the game. |
| Raid 67 | GJ 33 - 28 UM | Pradeep Kumar (GJ) | That takes some guts. Solo Tackle by Rahul Sethpal to take out raider Pradeep Kumar. |
| Raid 73 | GJ 34 - 30 UM | Rakesh Sangroya (GJ) | Rakesh Sangroya thrown out of lobby by U Mumba defense, Ajinkya Kapre manages to stay inside the line and saves a point. |
| Raid 79 | GJ 36 - 33 UM | Mahendra Ganesh Rajput (GJ) | Harendra Kumar strikes, gets rid of Mahendra. |
