After making it to the playoffs for the first time in the sixth season of the league, Dabang Delhi KC is off to a sensational start in the ongoing season. They have won all their first three games and are currently at the second position on the points table with 15 points. As they have a couple of close wins against Tamil Thalaivas and Telugu Titans out of the three, they are placed below Jaipur Pink Panthers who also have three wins to their name.

“We feel really good, I think this is the first instance where Dabang Delhi have won three consecutive matches and that too at the start of the tournament. In previous season we used to win one and lose one so it used be level.”

Speaking about his partnership with the senior defender, Pahal explained, “I have been playing a little loose but Joginder has been playing well. Last year for us was very good. There have been just 2-3 matches played so far and there are a lot of matches that we are yet to play. I and Joginder have 4-5 years of experience of playing together. We can converse through our eyes and we get to know who is going to do what.”

The right corner defender for Delhi also spoke about Joginder’s captaincy and his impact on the team, “Joginder is a very intelligent player and he has played so much that he knows which defender is loose or which raider is good in the opposition side. He knows which defender is tight and is to be avoided, he tells who to touch as well for our raiders. He analyses raiders as well he tells which raider is going to try what like if he is going go for a hand touch or any other move.” 

Apart from the corner combination, Delhi had Vishal Mane in the defence in the previous edition at the right cover position. Apart from Mane, the team has brought in Anil Kumar and Saeid Gaffari for the left-hand side as that was the only position which was lacking a proper player in the defence. Anil had played in the first two games but wasn’t that up to the mark and even sustained an injury in the second. Coach Krishan Kumar Hooda showed full faith on Gaffari and the Iranian vindicated his inclusion in the team with four tackle points in the third game against Haryana Steelers. Pahal has mentioned that Gaffari and Mane had a good understanding during the match at the cover position.

“Iranian players are very quick to give support during defence and they practice a lot accordingly. We gave him a chance because our previous left cover Anil Kumar had an injury and he played really well in combination with Vishal Mane. We saw a lot of difference because of him in the last match, the experienced defender stated.

Speaking about the youngster, Pahal said, “In coming times he (Naveen) is going to be the no.1 raider for Delhi, the coach has worked at a lot on him. In the practice, he used to raid everyday against our defenders. So, we have polished him a lot and are getting good results because of that.”

Pahal, who specialises in the thigh hold at the right corner of the mat, is currently the second defender in the overall points table in all seasons. He has 266 tackle points from 92 matches and the table is led by Tamil Thalaivas all-rounder Manjeet Chhillar who has 317 so far. The Delhi player has the target of overtaking Manjeet’s numbers and also expects the team to do well in the playoffs going ahead in the season.

(For the team)Going into the playoffs is a must, our target after that is playing the semi-finals which is very important as the finals are in the hands of God and looking at the team right now it seems that we are going to reach semi-finals this time,” Pahal signed off.