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On Thursday, UP Yoddha sent across a message to the other teams in the Pro Kabaddi League Season 5. They hammered Jaipur Pink Panthers 53-32 on the last day of the Jaipur leg and are in the driving seat to qualify for the play-offs.
Rishank Devadiga scored a mind-boggling 28 raid points and set the all-time record for most points scored in a single match. He beat Pardeep Narwal and Kashiling Adake's record of 24 points.
Rishank was on fire tonight and there was nothing that the Jaipur defenders could do about it. He caused carnage in the opposition half as the Pink Panthers players were left wondering what had just hit them.
Post the game, Devaidiga explained the reason behind his stupendous performance. He revealed that Nitin Tomar's absence inspired him to give it his all on a night when the Yoddhas desperately needed a win to put some daylight between themselves and the chasing pack in Zone B.
"We found out yesterday that Nitin is sick. When a captain who is in great form doesn't play, there is a lot of pressure on the team," he explained.
"The coach gave me the responsibility and I knew winning tonight's match was extremely important. I played according to the demands of the match," he added.
Rishank displayed God like efficiency, scoring 28 points in just 27 attempts. These numbers are unheard of in the Pro Kabaddi world. For someone who had not hit top form before tonight, Devadiga could not have timed his return to form any better.
There's no denying that he is one of the elite raiders in the league. At times, lack of confidence has led to his downfall. But tonight, he looked invincible. To put things into perspective, UP scored 32 raid points tonight and 28 of them were scored by Rishank.
UP Yoddha's assistant coach voiced his opinion about his side's dominating performance. He was ecstatic with Rishank's performance and reckons his team is definitely through to the playoffs after tonight's massive victory.
"Our captain, Nitin Tomar is sick so Rishank told me that he would take all the responsibility. He played like a captain tonight. We have lost many matches in the final seconds, but today's match was important. We don't have any worries now," he said.
"UP Yoddha is a superb team. Our offense and defense are efficient and we have multiple all-round players. We will play well no doubt," the coach promised.
