Noida (Uttar Pradesh) [India], November 9 : Ahead of the second leg of Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) season 11, UP Yoddhas captain Surender Gill said that the team is excited to play in their home state and aims to win maximum matches in this second leg of the competition.
Gill was speaking at the launch of PKL season 11 second leg. It is set to kick off at the Noida Indoor Stadium on Sunday, November 10. The electrifying opener of the Noida leg will feature a clash between home team UP Yoddhas and U Mumba.
UP Yoddhas is in the ninth place in the points tally with three wins and four losses, giving them 19 points. In their previous match, they lost to Jaipur Pink Panthers by 30-33.
Speaking toat the launch event at Noida, Gill said that players' families will turn up for the matches since a lot of players in the team are from Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.
"It is our home ground and the family of our players will also come to support us because most of the players are from the northern side of the country like UP and Haryana. So, are very excited. We would want to win maximum matches here and go to the Pune leg with a good momentum," he said.
On the team's rocky and inconsistent season so far, Gill said that even in previous seasons, the team used to pick up momentum in a later stage of the competition after losing matches initially.
"This time we have won as well as lost matches so our team's overall performance has been good," he added.
Also, UP Yoddhas head coach Jasveer Singh said that the team's performance has been good but he expects much better.
"A few matches were very close where we made some mistakes but in coming matches the team will come and do better in upcoming matches," he added.
Jasveer also said that this second leg in UP is important to them since it is at their home and performing well here would mean less pressure in the Pune leg and subsequent matches.
"So, we will try not to repeat the mistakes which we did. We hope to find momentum so that we are not under pressure in last leg matches of the tournament," he added.
Talking about U Mumba, their opponents, he said, "U Mumba is a very balanced team and they have done well coming into this leg. They have a very good defence and their new raiders are also good. We too have a very balanced team and we will try to win the coming matches."
U Mumba is at the third spot in the PKL standings with four wins, two losses and a tie in seven games, giving them 24 points. In their previous match, U Mumba beat Patna Pirates 40-42.
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