Pune: The U.P. Yoddhas seemed to be well on their way to registering a comfortable win on the night, before the Haryana Steelers roared back in the second half during their Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) Season 9 match at the Shree Shivchhatrapati Sports Complex, on Saturday.
The thrilling contest went down all the way to the final raid, with both sides settling for a 36-36 tie in the end.
While the Steelers tried to make some early inroads, it was Pardeep Narwal who took charge for the Yoddhas, giving them the lead in the early exchanges. UP looked to build on from there on in, but Rakesh Narwal ensured the Steelers would be in touching distance after the first ten minutes.
As the clock ticked on, UP turned up the style too, with the defence overpowering the Steelers’ raiders. Surender Gill and Co. inflicted an All Out on the Steelers, as the lead swelled to 9 points soon after. The dominant UP Yoddhas ended the first half firmly in control with the score reading 25-15 and Surender having notched up a Super 10 as well.
In the second half, it was the Steelers who came out of the blocks faster, mounting a superb comeback with the likes of Manjeet and Meetu cranking up the intensity on the raids. Midway through the second half, the ten-point lead was down to four and the momentum had swung.
With five minutes to go, a big finish was on the cards as the Steelers were just two points behind the Yoddhas. Meetu was leading the charge for the Steelers in the final minutes and had a chance to go for the win on the final raid of the match, but he decided to tread carefully as both sides settled for a tie.
–IANS