Telugu Titans hammered Puneri Paltan 60-24 in the Pro Kabaddi League at the Rajiv Gandhi Port Stadium in Vizag on Monday.
The Titans, right from the word go, had the Pune defence on the mat as they attacked at will. Cheered on by a vociferous home crowd, the Titans delivered when it mattered. They needed this win to improve their standing in the league and be in contention for a playoff spot.
Driven by this target, the Titans came out all guns blazing, determined to cast the Pune side into oblivion. The Telugu Titans, after this win are in fifth place behind the Bengaluru Bulls. For the boys from Pune, a play-off spot, after this big defeat, looks distant. To make matters worse they are last on the table.
The boys from Vizag signalled their aggressive intentions early on itself. In the opening ten minutes of the game, LONA points came the way of Deepak Nivas Hudda and his teammate Sukesh Hegde, which had the Pune defence in knots. Thereafter it was one-way traffic.
The Titans kept on going really hard at the side from Pune. As a result of having several players tagged early on in the game, Puneri Paltan lost most of their team as only two players remained on the floor.
The Titans took full advantage as they kept on scoring at will. The Pune players came back afterwards but by then the damage was done. If Rahul Chaudhari was the star in the last two games, Hudda stood out with a stellar show here.He racked up no less than 16 raid points. Chaudhari, though, was not to be left out as he too ensured LONA points came the way of the Telugu Titans.
Puneri Paltan never looked as if they could compete as by the half-way mark the Titans had a whopping 20-point lead. The second half was much the same as the boys from Vizag scored with every opportunity they received.
As in the first half, Hudda was simply phenomenal. Chaudhari and Hegde once again gave him terrific support as they dominated the game completely, to give the Titans fans a night to remember.
Points Table--
1] U Mumba - 38 points
2] Jaipur Pink Panthers - 35 points
3] Patna Pirates - 33 points
4] Bengaluru Bulls - 30 points
5] Telugu Titans - 28 points
6] Dabang DElhi - 26 points
7] Bengal Warriors - 20 points
8] Puneri Paltan - 15 points