PKL 2019 | Coach has asked one between me and Pawan to stay on mat, says Rohit Kumar
PKL
After winning the opening encounter against Patna Pirates, Bengaluru skipper Rohit Kumar has said that coach Randhir Singh has advised any one out of Pawan Sehrawat and Rohit Kumar to stay on the mat. Randhir highlighted the importance of Super Tackles which played an important role in the win.
Like the last edition of the league, Bengaluru skipper Rohit Kumar was used as the second-choice raider in their first game against Patna. Pawan Sehrawat was again the primary raider for the team and also manage to bagged nine raid points in the game. When asked about the role, Rohit said at the press conference that he and Pawan have been asked to stay on the mat for a longer period of time.
“I had a similar role last season when I used to try spending as much time on the mat as possible and I’ve been asked to do the same this year by the coach. He has asked one out of Pawan Sehrawat and me to always stay on the mat. He told me to take my time and play, try for bonuses and that worked. So, I try to spend as much time on the mat as possible,” Rohit said during the post-match press conference.
The Bulls were successful in restricting Pardeep Narwal from picking up too many points in the game. Although the Patna skipper managed to bag a Super 10, it was still good for the defending champions as he usually goes over 15-16 points. Coach Randhir Singh spoke about Pardeep’s performance in the game and how they targeted to restrict the opposition captain from running away with raid points.
“If you can control Pardeep from reaching 15-16 points, then you can win the game because they have two raiders and so do we and both our defences are good. So, the defence that was more successful had a big chance to win and our four Super Tackles were important,” the coach explained.
At a point of time, the Patna side were ahead of the Bulls. However, the coach was unfazed about the situation as the Bulls always have that knack of making a comeback in the second half of the game as was evident from the last year performance.
“Players play but in the last five minutes the correct strategy which works wins the match. Last season, we won eight matches in the closing stages of the game. So, when Patna Pirates were a few points ahead at half-time, I told my players to not get tensed and just give their 100 per cent. Patna Pirates aren’t an easy opponent, they are three-time champions. Pardeep is a record holder. All 12 teams are equal, and we can’t afford to underestimate any team,” Randhir stated.
“I took the timeout with six minutes left and I told the players to play with a cool mind and because of that we inflicted four Super Tackles – that’s why we won today.”
