The unstoppable Dabang Delhi confirmed the second semifinal spot of PKL Season 11 after a commanding 41-35 victory over the Gujarat Giants at the Badminton Hall in the Balewadi Sports Complex on Monday.
It was a very impressive win for the season 8 champions, who have extended their unbeaten run to 15 matches, the most for any team in the history of the PKL. Ashu Malik was the hero yet again, leading the way with his 14 points – completing his 18th Super 10 of the season.
A thrilling first half saw Gujarat Giants and Dabang Delhi engage in a closely contested battle, as the match began evenly with both teams trading bonus points. The Gujarat Giants drew first blood through Rakesh’s toe touch, building an early 4-2 advantage. They maintained pressure and executed an ALL OUT on Dabang Delhi, extending their lead to 10-5 by the 8-minute mark.
However, Dabang Delhi mounted a strong comeback in the latter stages of the half. The turning point came through Ashu Malik’s Super Raid, where he scored four crucial points. Despite Gujarat’s unsuccessful review challenging a boundary line decision, Delhi’s momentum continued to build.
Ashu Malik proved particularly effective, securing multiple points through running hand touches and kicks. The Gujarat Giants’ defence, despite some strong moments, struggled to contain Dabang Delhi’s raiders in the closing minutes, who inflicted an ALL OUT on the Gujarat Giants as well. The half ended dramatically with Dabang Delhi holding a narrow 20-17 lead at the break.
The second half saw Dabang Delhi assert their dominance. Ashu Malik continued his impressive performance, achieving a Super 10 and consistently finding ways through the Gujarat Giants’ defence. Despite a Super Tackle and strong defensive efforts from Jitender Yadav, Dabang Delhi gradually extended their lead.
A crucial ALL OUT inflicted on Gujarat Giants at the 32-minute mark proved decisive, with Dabang Delhi establishing a commanding 31-24 lead. Despite Gujarat Giants’ attempts to mount a comeback through strategic Do-Or-Die raids, Dabang Delhi’s defene held firm.
The final moments of the match saw Dabang Delhi inflict their fourth ALL OUT on the Gujarat Giants, though Gujarat managed to execute a super raid in response. The highlight of the closing stages was Naveen Kumar achieving his milestone 1100th PKL Raid Point, putting an exclamation mark on Dabang Delhi’s victory.
Defending champions Puneri Paltan end campaign with win
Puneri Paltan cruised to a comprehensive ten-point victory over the Tamil Thalaivas, winning 42-32 at the Badminton Hall in the Balewadi Sports Complex on Monday. The defending champions finished their campaign on a high courtesy a Super 10 from Aryavardhan Navale and a High-5 from Gaurav Khatri, while the others made their mark to wrap up a complete performance.
Abhishek Manokaran’s tackle opened the scoring with the first tackle of the night before Sachin and Aryavardhan Navale exchanged two-point raids in the opening exchanges. The latter gave Puneri Paltan the lead at 5-4. V. Ajith Kumar further extended the lead as he got himself on the board with a couple of raids.
It didn’t take too long for Puneri Paltan to register their first ALL OUT, courtesy Sanket Sawant’s tackle on Himanshu, giving his side a four-point lead at 10-6. Aryavardhan Navale further piled on the pressure and executed a Super Raid, before a tackle from V. Ajith Kumar allow the defending champions to inflict another ALL OUT in quick succession, extending their lead to thirteen points within the first ten minutes as the scoreline read 20-7.
Pankaj Mohite took some time to get himself on the board with a Do-or-Die Raid, while Aman completed 50 tackle points for the season, keeping Puneri Paltan in the driver’s seat. Tamil Thalaivas managed to stop the bleeding to close with some decent defending, closing out the first half with the score at 28-13.
A slow start to the second half saw the defensives calling the shots as Amir Hossein Bastami and Himanshu made their presence felt on both ends of the floor, helping Tamil Thalaivas find some momentum. However, Aryavardhan Navale completed his Super 10 to keep a 13-point lead intact for Puneri Paltan.
Gaurav Khatri, Sanket Sawant and Aman were doing the damage on the defensive end, while V. Ajith Kumar kept the raiding department ticking to keep their side in the lead heading into the last phase of the contest. Tamil Thalaivas could never quite brush off the double-digit deficit with the Puneri Paltan dictating terms rather comfortably in the second half.
Himanshu continued to display some courage and spirit for Tamil Thalaivas. Gaurav Khatri his High-5, eventually, making sure that the early onslaught from Puneri Paltan that helped their side emerge victorious in their final match.
Ali Hadi registered a Super Tackle to help the defending champions breach the 40-point mark in the closing stages. Tamil Thalaivas ended with a couple of tackles from Nitesh Kumar, who completed his High-5, and Abhishek Manokaran. Puneri Paltan prevailed comfortably in the end, signing off with a win by a scoreline of 42-32.
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