The first game of Day 4 saw Gujarat Giants pummel Mumbai Khiladis by a scoreline of 66-48 to consolidate the top spot in the league standings at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex, Mahalunge, Pune. In the second match of Wednesday, Chennai Quick Guns picked their first points of the tournament as they edged Telugu Yoddhas by a 53-46 margin in an end-to-end encounter.
Match 7: Gujarat Giants vs Mumbai Khiladis
Mumbai Khiladis’ captain Vijay Hajare won the toss and invited Gujarat Giants to attack first. Gujarat Giants continued from where they had left yesterday and made a solid start. With the help of three Sky Dives and two Pole Dives, Gujarat had complete control in the first seven minutes. This ensured they finished Turn 1 with a 25-to-nil lead.
In Turn 2, within 90 seconds the Khiladis got rid of the Giants’ first Batch. Durvesh Salunke, Khiladis’ Wazir wreaked havoc with his attacking skills against Giants’ first two batches, but their Batch 3 troubled the Khiladis’ Attackers with their dodging skills. Suyash Gurgate tried helping the Giants to maintain their lead with a Dream Run, but it just wasn’t enough as it was even-steven at the end of the first inning with nothing to separate the two sides.
In Turn 3, Gujarat pushed themselves and took the Powerplay after adding 8 points to their account. Soon, the Giants inflicted an All Out to complete a Full On Chase, adding bonus in the process. They scored 37 attacking points with the help of five Sky Dives and one Pole Dive, while Khiladis couldn’t add a point to their total. The Khiladis Defenders let themselves down as they failed to score a single point throughout the course of the match.
Post that, the Giants were in the driving seat and their Defenders tried to run down the clock in the final Turn. Their Batch 3 got them another Dream Run before the end of the game. By the end of the final whistle, the Giants had made it a hat-trick of wins as they beat Mumbai Khiladis by 18 points.
Match Awards:
Attacker of the Match: Ranjan Shetty
Defender of the Match: Suyash Gargate
Ultimate Kho of the Match: Durvesh Salunke
Match 8: Telugu Yoddhas vs Chennai Quick Guns
Telugu Yoddhas’ captain Prajwal won the toss and opted to defend first. Chennai Quick Guns had a watchful start as they were desperate for a win. Deepak Madhav was the lone warrior for the Yoddhas in this turn as the Defender got them their first Dream Run while the Powerplay was on, and added 4 points to the scoreboard. The Quick Guns lost their only review of the inning against the terrific Deepak Madhav but managed to have a 17-point lead, courtesy four Sky Dives and one Pole Dive in the attack.
Yoddhas, who are known for their attack, kept the scoreboard moving at the start of Turn 2 but the Chennai’s’ Batch 2 Defenders completed a 4-point Dream Run with the help of some blaze from Amit Patil and Madan, that too in a Powerplay. They came alive against the mighty Yoddhas side to ensure the first inning ended neck-to-neck with 25-25 on board.
The Quick Guns were quick enough with their chasing game in Turn 3. Ramji Kashyap looked promising for them in the attack. The Yoddhas fell short of a Dream Run by five seconds in this turn as the Quick Guns added 24 points, which included four Sky Dives.
The Yoddhas were under immense pressure to add points and the stress kept mounting. The Quick Guns’ Defender P Narasayya got his basics right and extended their lead with a Dream Run. The Quick Guns’ Batch 2 Defenders also came in and got them another Dream Run to increase the gap to 10 points with a minute left in the game. When the whistle blew at the end of Turn 4, Chennai had made a statement with a seven-point win over the Yoddhas to open their account.
Match Awards:
Attacker of the Match: V Kabilan
Defender of the Match: Deepak Madhav
Ultimate Kho of the Match: P Narasayya
