Pro Kabaddi League 2018, Match 13: Telugu Titans vs UP Yoddha, Player Ratings

Pro Kabaddi League 2018 action continued as the action moved from the South of India to North India in the homeland of the sport, Sonepat in the state of Haryana. The second leg of the competition will take place at the Motilal Nehru School of Sport with the home side Haryana Steelers hosting the various opponents in the Sonepat leg of the league.

The UP Yoddha faced their South Indian counterparts Telugu Titans in the first match of the day in what promised to be an all-out raiding battle. Both the sides boasted a bunch of strong raiders with the likes of Rahul Chaudhari, Rishank Devadiga, Shrikant Jadhav, Nilesh Salunke and Prashant Kumar Rai on the mat.

UP Yoddha came into this match on the back of a closely fought loss against the Patna Pirates in a match that saw the result go down to the wire till the last raid as Shrikant Jadhav almost clinched the win for the Yoddhas with a Super Raid but fell short of the midline. The defence had a decent outing as both Sagar Krishna and Nitesh Kumar managed to get a few tackle points on the board.

Telugu Titans had a strong outing in their first match of the season against the Tamil Thalaivas when they defeated the home side at the JLN Indoor Stadium in Chennai. Rahul Chaudhari and Nilesh Salunke had a field day against the Thalaivas' defence with their smooth raiding. An added positive for the Titans was the form of Mohsen Maghsoudlou who dazzled on the mat scoring both in attack as well as defence for the team. The defence was manned by the captain Vishal Bhardwaj along with the support of Iranian powerhouse Abozar Mighani at the right corner.

Telugu Titans put on a strong all-around show to win 34-29 over the UP Yoddha in a performance that saw both the team's defenders play well.

Telugu Titans

Vishal Bhardwaj - (7/10)

The captain of the Telugu Titans was at his best from the left corner as he executed a couple of great ankle holds on the UP Yoddha raiders.

Anil Kumar - (6/10)

Even though Anil Kumar got only one tackle point to his credit, he was involved in a lot of assists in the tackles executed by the defenders and played his part for the Telugu Titans.

Abozar Mighani - (8/10)

After a quiet first match of the season, the Iranian defender finally came into his element has he was dangerous on the right corner and combined well with Vishal Bhardwaj. He managed to get the High 5 tonight and was the best defender for the Titans.

Farhad Milaghardan - (7/10)

The Iranian all-rounder had a quiet first half of the match but came into his own in the second half and did well in the defence. He even scored a bonus point which highlighted his utlity for the team on the mat.

Mohsen Maghsoudlou - (6/10)

The all-rounder had a decent outing tonight after his incredible performance in the first match. He was used as the third raider tonight by the Telugu Titans and was helpful with his effort in the defensive side of things as well.

Nilesh Salunke - (8/10)

The Maharashtra man was on song in the first half of the match as he kept racking up the bonus points and did well to support the main raider Rahul Chaudhari with his contribution. He was always a danger man for the Titans whenever Chaudhari was off the mat and performed with conviction.

Rahul Chaudhari - (8.5/10)

The star man for the Telugu Titans displayed his usual lethal raiding skills for the Titans as he raided from both sides of the mat. He almost scored his Super 10 on the night as he finished at 9 raid points again.

UP Yoddha

Nitesh Kumar - (6/10)

The right corner of the UP Yoddha did well with his tackles and combined well with the other defenders to get three tackle points to his credit.

Amit Narwal - (3/10)

The cover defender had a disappointing match tonight as he gave away a couple of easy points for the Telugu Titans raiders. He will hope for a better showing as the season goes on.

Narender - (4/10)

The other cover defender, who had impressed with his body holds in the initial matches had an off day tonight as he was unable to score points for the team on the mat.

Sagar Krishna - (7/10)

The left corner for the UP Yoddha was strong and quick on his feet with his tackles. He combined well with his corner partner Nitesh Kumar to get four tackle points to his name.

Prashant Kumar Rai - (8/10)

The former Haryana Steelers raider was kept quiet by the defensive players of the Telugu Titans. He found it tough to get going tonight in the first half and managed seven raid points tonight after a good second half showing. However, he did have four tackle points including one Super Tackle and thus, was the top scoring player for the team.

Shrikant Jadhav - (4/10)

Shrikant Jadhav had a rare off night tonight against the Titans as he struggled to get raid points. He found it difficult to beat the corner defensive combination of the Titans and only scored two raid points tonight.

Rishank Devadiga - (7/10)

The UP Yoddha captain had a decent first half outing tonight with his raiding and notched up five raid points which included a couple of bonus points. However, he also struggled against the Titans' defence and could not inspire the side with his raiding.

Substitutes:

Rohit Kumar Choudhary - (2/10)

The substitute raider was put on by the coach a couple of times to raid when the main raiders were out on the bench.

Sachin Kumar - (3/10)

The defender came on at a moment when UP Yoddha was down to just two men and helped to execute a Super Tackle along with Prashant Kumar Rai.