Pro Kabaddi 2018: Changes that could script Gujarat's entry into PKL final

In the Qualifier 1 of VIVO Pro Kabaddi season six (PKL 2018), Gujarat Fortunegiants were out classed by Bengaluru Bulls, who qualified for the summit clash and awaiting a winner of Gujarat Fortunegiants vs UP Yoddha Qualifier 2 clash. Gujarat Fortunegiants, who lit the group stage on fire thanks to consistent performance by their raiders and defence. But Manpreet Singh boys failed miserably in the playoff and now they have last chance to make it to the second consecutive pro Kabaddi 2018 final.

Check Qualifier 2 -- Gujarat Fortunegiants vs UP Yoddha LIVE score and match updates here

 
Sunil-Parvesh combination must come back after Qualifier 1 debacle
 
Gujarat Fortunegiants cover combination of Sunil Kumar and Parvesh Bhainswal did not have a good game in Qualifier 1 as they ended up losing to Bengaluru Bulls. The duo of Sunil and Parvesh failed to pick up a single tackle point in the first half of the game. Captain Sunil Kumar had zero tackle points from the entire match while Parvesh managed only 1 tackle point from 5 tackles. Even as a duo, this was their worst combined performance of Pro Kabaddi 2018. They had managed to score at least 4 tackle points combined in every match before this one in PKL 2018. As a team they had just 2 tackle points in the 1st half and finished the match with just 6 tackle points, their joint-2nd lowest of Pro Kabaddi 2018.

Worst Performance by Sunil-Parvesh Combo – PKL 2018
Match	Tackle Points
GUJ v BLR QUALIFIER 1	1
GUJ v BLR Match 69	4
MUM v GUJ Match 92	4
HYD v GUJ Match 100	4
PUN v GUJ Match 22	5

 

 
The Bengaluru raiders had a specific strategy and targeted Gujarat’s main defenders and the Gujarat could not find a solution to it. Bulls opened up the weak link of Gujarat defence and used it to their advantage, which forced Gujarat to change their defensive combination.

Lowest Tackle Points by Gujarat - PKL 2018
Match Details	Tackle Points	Failed Tackles
Vs. Telugu Titans M#100	5	13
Vs. Bengaluru Bulls, Qualifier 1	6	19
Vs. Bengaluru Bulls M#69	6	17

 

Parvesh (82 tackle points) and Sunil (69 tackle points) are the 3rd and 4^th leading tackle point scorers of PKL 2018 and will need to recover from that bad game quickly. The success of their covers has been the foundation upon which Gujarat’s success has been built in Pro Kabaddi 2018.

Gujarat Cover Combination - PKL 2018
Defender	Sunil Kumar	Parvesh Bhainswal
Matches	23	23
Tackle Points	69	82
HIGH 5s	3	5
Avgerage Tackle Points	3.0	3.6
Tackle SR	57	64

 

So the covers need to have a good game for the team to be successful. Sunil had a good game when Gujarat played UP Yoddha in the league stage as he scored a HIGH 5.  It is going to be interesting to see, how Gujarat defence is going to approach this game after a poor show in qualifier 1.
 
Gujarat Fortunegiants raiding duo Sachin-Prapanjan need to keep the pace going till the end
 
Sachin had a Super 10 for Gujarat in Qualifier 1 against Bengaluru, but unfortunately for him he had no support. Sachin had 10 raid points from 12 raids at a very good raid Strike Rate of 83. Prapanjan, who had formed a deadly combination with Sachin, disappointed in Qualifier 1 as had just 5 raid points from his 14 raids. He was tackled 5 times during the match. With the defence struggling, Sachin by himself was not able to manage the scoring for Gujarat Fortunegiants. Prapanjan had actually been on a very good run of form before Qualifier match against Bengaluru Bulls – in the 5 matches before the Qualifier he had scored 46 raid points, more than even Sachin, at a good raid SR of 55. Sachin and Prapanjan are the 2 most successful raiders for Gujarat in PKL 6 and they will need Prapanjan to support once again in this knockout game.

Gujarat Lead Raiders – PKL 2018
Raider	Sachin	Prapanjan
Matches	21	20
Raid Points	171	112
SUPER 10s	6	4
Avgerage Raid Pointsts.	8.1	5.6
Raid SR	53	49

 

Sachin’s 2nd half slowdown was also shown in the match against Bengaluru where 7 out of his 10 raid points came in the 1st half. This has been a season-long trend with Sachin where he has been stronger in the 1st half as compared to the 2nd half. Prapanjan is also similar in that regard.       

Sachin Phase Wise Performance – PKL 2018
Time	Raid Pts.	Raid SR
1-10	55	65
11-20	42	55
21-30	37	46
31-40	37	45

Prapanjan Phase Wise Performance – PKL 6
Time	Raid Pts.	Raid SR
1-10	35	63
11-20	33	53
21-30	22	37
31-40	22	44

 

 
If the game goes close and Gujarat need raid points in the closing minutes of the game, their raiders will need to perform than what they have done so far in the season.

Team Gujarat Fortunegiants record

Overall
Player	Mts.	Raid Pts	Avg. Raid Pts	Raid SR	Super 10	Tackle Pts	Avg. Tackle Pts	Tackle SR	High 5	Total Pts
Sachin	45	330	7.3	53	13	27	0.6	61	0	357
K. Prapanjan	61	254	4.2	43	7	4	0.1	11	0	258
Mahendra Rajput	62	180	3.0	46	2	15	0.2	29	0	195
Ajay Kumar	49	181	3.9	40	4	1	0	7	0	182
Parvesh Bhainswal	54	0	0	0	0	133	2.5	57	7	133
Sunil Kumar	48	2	0.1	3	0	126	2.6	56	6	128
Rohit Gulia	36	83	2.3	28	0	6	0.2	16	0	89
Hadi Oshtorak	48	7	0.9	50	0	65	1.4	43	2	72
Dong Geon Lee	28	60	2.1	45	1	0	0	0	0	60
Ruturaj Koravi	21	0	0	0	0	47	2.2	40	1	47
Sachin Vittala	24	12	2	33	0	23	1	41	0	35
Shubham Palkar	12	9	0.8	24	0	0	0	0	0	9
Lalit Chaudhary	3	3	1	43	0	4	1.3	100	0	7
Dharmender	4	5	1.7	83	0	0	0	0	0	5
Amit	5	0	0	0	0	2	0.4	33	0	2
Vikram Kandola	1	0	0	0	0	1	1	17	0	1
Yashwant Bishnoi	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
C Kalai Arasan	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Anil	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0