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UP Yoddhas coach Upendra Malik recently opened up on why Surender Gill took over from Pardeep Narwal as their main raider in the clash against Bengal Warriors on Monday.
UP Yoddhas are currently placed fifth in the points table with two wins, two defeats and a draw. They were on the verge of beating the Bengal Warriors, but the latter bounced back to end the game on level terms.
Following the clash against Bengal Warriors, Upendra shared the rationale behind using Surender as the main raider. Addressing reporters at the end of the game, he said:
"It depends on the match strategies because when we felt that Surender Gill could perform well, we gave him more raiding opportunities."
"In the initial raids by Pardeep, the opposing team had 4 or 5 players on the mat, but Pardeep does well against 6 or 7 players. Since Bengal’s left defence was strong today, we gave Gill more chances to face them,” he added.
Upendra Malik was hopeful of winning the game after his team made successful raids in the final few minutes. Much to his dismay, the game ended in a 37-37 tie.
"We should have won this match, but it ended in a tie," he added. "If there had been 2 seconds more on the clock for the final raid, the match would have been unfavourable for us. Therefore, we are happy to draw the match and take 3 points."
Surender Gill bagged the most number of points in the gritty 37-37 tie
UP Yoddhas skipper Pardeep Narwal wasn't at his absolute best on the mat as Bengal Warriors’ defenders didn’t allow him to score points easily. It was, however, Surender Gill, who took the responsibility on his shoulders and consistently bagged points for the team in the raiding department.
Gill bagged 18 points - the most by a raider in the game, including 13 touch-points. Pardeep, on the other hand, could only secure two points across nine raids for his team.
UP Yoddhas are slated to play their next match against Jaipur Pink Panthers on Wednesday at Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Pune.
