Hyderabad, Dec 8 The Tamil Thalaivas, led by Ajinkya Pawar, put on quite the show for their fans, closing out the fifth playoff berth in Season 9 of vivo Pro Kabaddi League when they registered a comprehensive 43-28 win against the UP Yoddhas, who have also made their reservations for Mumbai.
It was the Tamil Thalaivas' tenth win in 21 matches alongside 4 ties and 7 defeats.
"We are very happy to have qualified for the playoffs, and also with the manner in which we have managed to do so. We have won a good number of matches within a limited time period and made the play offs, which is historic. I hope this will also be an inspiration to all young players coming up that if you don't lose hope, if you keep at your training and keep giving your best, you will definitely succeed," said coach Ashan Kumar.
Meanwhile captain Ajinkya Pawar said, "This was an important match for us and we just went about doing things the way the coach had instructed us." After recovering from a poor run of form initially, the Tamil Thalaivas have looked a very confident side, "We never felt scared or nervous really, the team knows that we have the coach's backing and his motivation," he added.
"We have been affected by injuries and without delving on it too much, we have tried to replace the player to fit the requirements, even though the players are all different in their own ways. And as a coach it is my responsibility to be able to help the players and team in such difficult situations," the coach said.
The Gujarat Giants have been in impressive form in recent weeks with Parteek Dahiya leading the way, scoring plenty of points in every outing. However, they will be up against the mighty Jaipur Pink Panthers, who have the ace raider Arjun Deshwal leading the attack with great aplomb, on Friday. Can the resurgent Gujarat Giants land another mighty blow?
In the second game, the Puneri Paltan come up against the UP Yoddhas, with both teams having secured a playoff berth. Nonetheless, Puneri Paltan with Fazel Atrachali leading the pack will want to keep the momentum going with the big scalp of Pardeep Narwal and UP Yoddhas.
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