PKL 2019 | Kabaddi is a game where there is no scope for going wrong, says Manpreet Singh
PKL
Gujarat Fortunegiants’ coach Manpreet Singh, after their tie match against Bengal Warriors, stated that Kabaddi is a sport that has no scope for going wrong. This was Gujarat’s first tie of the season and they are currently eighth on the points table with five wins seven losses in 13 matches.
Gujarat Fortunegiants were leading the proceeding for the majority of the match but that lead was never more than 2-3 points. They made some early mistakes but recovered quickly and were leading by 3 points by the time the first half ended. One of the reasons for the lead was Sonu’s Super raid, where he ousted 3 of Bengal’s main defenders. Â
In the last two minutes, when Gujarat were seen leading by a couple of points and Bengal were due for a do-or-die raid, their defence made a terrible mistake giving away a point then. To compensate that, however, Sachin Tanwar got a point in their do-or-die raid and the score difference was stable at two. In Bengal’s last raid of the match, Maninder Singh scored 2 points by ousting Sunil Kumar and Parvesh Bhainswal and that resulted in a tie match.
“We had a lead towards the end and the match was in our hands. They even had a do-or-die raid. But we couldn’t capitalise. I don’t think there were any mistakes as such. Kabaddi is a game where there is no scope for going wrong. It has different skills and whoever executes them better gets the point. Our previous match was also decided in the last raid and so was this one. So, I think our team is getting better,” coach Manpreet Singh when asked about where it went wrong in the post-match press conference.
In the raiding department, we witnessed a mixed effort as three of the players contributed to the team’s total. Sachin Tanwar was the highest scorer with 6 raid points and following him was Rohit Gulia(5) and Sonu(4). Rohit Gulia was substituted at the end of the first half and played a big part in shifting the momentum towards the Fortunegiants.
"It was a game that we should have won but was tied in the end. Even if we gave away just one point instead of two towards the end, we could have won. But these things happen. Both teams played really well and no one could make out throughout the 40 minutes, which team will win. If there are more such matches, it is good for the sport of kabaddi,” Manpreet Singh explained.
Their defence did seem a bit lacklustre though, as no more than two players scored more than two tackle points. Skipper Sunil Kumar was the top scorer with three points and surprisingly Sonu(2) had the second-highest points. Even though Sunil was the top scorer, he also did as many as unsuccessful tackles and that harmed his team.Â
“The playoff stage will be arriving soon and getting there is our only aim right now. We will try to win all our remaining matches. That is something this team is capable of. We want to make our way into the playoffs and make sure we don’t disappoint our fans,” Manpreet Singh signed off.
