Cuttack: Chennai Quick Guns grabbed the final semifinal spot in the Ultimate Kho Kho Season 2, defeating Mumbai Khiladis 41-18 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium here on Saturday.
Odisha Juggernauts qualified for the semifinals earlier in the day with a victory over Gujarat Giants, while the latter and Telugu Yoddhas had made the cut on Friday.
Mumbai Khiladis won the toss and chose to defend but the performance of their defenders in Turn 1 did not vindicate their decision. They did not manage even a single dream run point as Chennai Quick Guns raced to a 16-0 lead.
Chennai Quick Guns consolidated their position with a brilliant defensive display in Turn 2. Their first batch of Ramji Kashyap, Madan and Vijay Shinde managed to last five minutes and 34 seconds on the mat, scoring six dream run points.
Two members of their second batch remained unconquered as Chennai Quick Guns carried a massive 22-8 lead into the second innings. The Chennai Quick Guns attackers continued their good show in Turn 3. They sent back Mumbai Khiladis’ first batch in two minutes and 20 seconds and their second batch in under two minutes.
That left Mumbai Khiladis with the mathematically impossible task of scoring 30 points in the final turn. That three different players — Suraj Lande, Sachin Bhargo and Akash Kadam — scored six points showed the potency of the Chennai Quick Guns attack.
In an earlier match, Odisha Juggernauts became the third team to make it to the semifinals by scoring a narrow 30-27 victory over Gujarat Giants. Odisha Juggernauts won an encounter that was too close to call till the final whistle, with Rohan Singade frustrating Gujarat Giants attackers in the final turn and making the difference.
Sunday’s matches will see Mumbai Khiladis take on Rajasthan Warriors, and Odisha Juggernauts take on Telugu Yoddhas.
–IANS
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