The Haryana Steelers rode on the brilliance of their defence to beat the Telugu Titans 37-30 in a Season 10 match of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium here on Monday. An outstanding Rahul Sethpal picked up eight tackle points and was supported ably by his defensive partner Mohit Nandal (6 points).
PKL Telugu Titans made a superb start and had the Haryana Steelers scrambling for numbers early on. The Haryana Steelers have made a habit of doing more with less though and so it proved yet again, their defence outlasting the Titan’s desire to inflict an All-Out.
In an electrifying passage of play, Rahul Sethpal pulled down Pawan Sehrawat for three Super Tackles in a row, to not just stave off an All-Out but also lead to a reversal in the scoreline and situation on the mat.
They inflicted an All-Out on the Telugu Titans to take a 20-11 lead and never looked back. At the end of the first half Sethpal, by himself had more tackle points than the entire Telugu Titans defence and the Haryana Steelers went into the break leading by 12 points.
The Haryana Steelers’ brilliant defending kept racking them points through the second half, and just like the first, they relied on an incredible run of Super Tackles to extend their lead. A lacklustre Sehrawat was substituted early in the half as the Telugu Titans tried a reset of tactics.
It worked in part as the Telugu Titans inflicted an All-Out of their own with three minutes left to cut the lead down to six points. The Haryana Steelers played to run down the clock though and saw the game out smartly to take the win.