Noida, Nov 13 (UNI) Ashu Malik single-handedly wrote a beautiful script for Dabang Delhi K.C. in match 50 of PKL 11 as he completed a Super 10 and also helped secure an impressive 38-38 tie with Puneri Paltan at the Noida Indoor Stadium here.
He finished with 17 points to ensure that his team went home with half the points on the night.
Puneri Paltan started in a dominating fashion on Tuesday night as Akash Shinde took the mantle of the raiding without their skipper Aslam Inamdar. The bright start was carried on by defenders Aman and Abinesh Nadarajan, who won crucial tackle points.
Mohit Goyat inflicted the first All-Out of the match on Dabang Delhi K.C. in the 10th minute, but Ashu Malik, in the absence of Naveen Kumar, became the first raider to reach 100 raid points in PKL 11 while also keeping his team alive in the game.
Led by Ashu, Dabang Delhi K.C. worked hard to mount a comeback, but Puneri Paltan’s defensive duo of Aman and Abinesh showed their class with multiple Super Tackles to their name.
Aman completed a well-earned High 5 in the first half itself as the score read 21-13 in favour of Puneri Paltan at the break.
Ashu Malik went on to complete his Super 10 at the start of the second half but the support was lacking from his teammates. In comparison, the young guns of Puneri Paltan worked together to keep their team in the hunt for the win.
The Dabang Delhi K.C. defenders seemed to fall flat on the night with Puneri Paltan inflicting a second All-Out on Dabang Delhi K.C. entering the final 10 minutes of the match.
Just when the match seemed to slip from the hands of Dabang Delhi K.C., Ashu Malik turned up the heat. His Super Raid got Sanket Sawant, Mohit Goyat and Aman off the mat, also inflicting an All-Out on Puneri Paltan, turning the tide of the match.And when it mattered, the Dabang Delhi K.C. defenders stepped to the fore.
With two minutes remaining, the deficit was reduced to just one point when Pankaj Mohite was successfully tackled by Gaurav Chillar, making for an interesting end to the clash.
In the penultimate raid of the match, Ashu equalised the score by getting Gaurav Khatri off the mat. Eventually, the officials called time on an exciting match that saw Dabang Delhi K.C. score 15 points in the final 10 minutes to seal the tie.