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The UP leg of the Pro Kabaddi League 2018 came to an end yesterday with the home side UP Yoddha failing to pick up a win in the entire leg, becoming the first team this season to achieve this ominous feat.
UP Yoddha struggled to get going in the raiding department as their raiders Shrikant Jadhav, Rishank Devadiga and Prashant Kumar Rai failed to hit a level of consistency required from a home leg side. However, their defence did well and was responsible for getting two ties to avoid a sweep of losses.
The UP leg saw a couple of stellar defensive showings from sides like Tamil Thalaivas, Gujarat Fortunegiants and Bengaluru Bulls, in addition to the home side. We take a look at the five best performing defenders from the UP leg in Greater Noida.
#5 Sachin Kumar - UP Yoddha
Sachin Kumar had started off the season on the bench for the UP Yoddha side but got a place in the starting seven after the poor run of form for their left corner defender Sagar Krishna.
Kumar, who is listed as an all-rounder embraced the opportunity with open hands and made the left corner spot his own performing consistently throughout the home leg. He was especially competent with his strong ankle holds and was able to form a formidable partnership with Nitesh Kumar on the other corner.
Kumar was also a handy raider for the UP Yoddha side with his pursuit raids on the retreating opposition raiders and managed to pick up a couple of points. On the defensive front, he finished with a tally of 13 points over the course of five matches and was one of the consistent performers for UP Yoddha in a disappointing home leg showing.
#4 Mahender Singh - Bengaluru Bulls
The last day of the UP leg in Greater Noida saw the Bengaluru Bulls face off against UP Yoddha in the final match of the day. UP Yoddha came into the match looking for their first win of the leg after losing and drawing a couple of matches before this fixture.
However, they were up against the mighty raiding unit of the Bengaluru Bulls and had their task cut out. It was the defence instead that proved their bane as Mahender Singh stepped up his game on the night against the UP Yoddha raiding trio.
The young cover defender looked supremely confident and put in strong blocks and dashes from his position to keep potent raiders like Shrikant Jadhav and Rishank Devadiga in check. He finished with six tackle points on the night as Bulls denied a home leg win for the UP Yoddha side.
#3 Sunil Kumar - Gujarat Fortunegiants
Gujarat Fortunegiants have been one of the most in-form teams in the league, winning all five of their last five matches after starting slowly with a draw and a loss early in the season. The young team coached by Manpreet Singh have continued to grow in stature as the season has progressed.
One of the major forces for the team's consistent performances has been their young captain Sunil Kumar. The right cover defender has led the side well on the mat showing a great level of maturity at such a young age which has reaped the benefits for the team. He has formed a formidable partnership with Parvesh Bhainswal at the cover position and the two have been putting in tackles left and right for the Gujarat side.
Sunil Kumar was in stellar form against the Jaipur Pink Panthers as he scored eight tackle points in eight attempts bagging the top defender prize for the match.
#2 Manjeet Chillar - Tamil Thalaivas
The highest scoring defender of all-time in the Pro Kabaddi League, Manjeet Chillar has steadily regained his form for the Tamil Thalaivas this season after a poor start in their home leg in Chennai.
The Thalaivas took on the home side UP Yoddha in the first match of the home leg and finished with a strong 46-24 win after a stellar showing by Manjeet Chillar and Sukesh Hegde. Manjeet Chillar was in top form for the Tamil Thalaivas picking up a massive eight points in the match bringing up another High 5 to his name.
Manjeet appeared to be back to his vintage form in the cover position getting defenders out with his blocks and dashes accompanied with brute force. He was the leader of the defence and kept the formidable UP Yoddha raiding unit at bay.
#1 Nitesh Kumar - UP Yoddha
The right corner defender Nitesh Kumar emerged as the best defender of the UP leg in Greater Noida and also rose to the position of the highest scoring defender this season.
Nitesh Kumar was the most consistent performer on the UP Yoddha roster as the team struggled to get the wins and eventually finished with three losses and two ties in their home leg. However, the poor performance of the team did not affect Kumar, who was steadily picking up the points on the right corner with his ankle and double thigh hold tackles. He scored at a consistent rate and finished with a tally of 20 tackle points in five matches, missing out on a High 5 on three occasions.
In the last match of the home leg, Nitesh Kumar was highly effective against the Bengaluru Bulls' raider Pawan Kumar Sehrawat getting him out on three occasions with his formidable thigh holds from the corner.
