PKL 8: Abhishek Singh, Fazel Atrachali shine as U Mumba beat Telugu Titans

Abhishek Singh was the star for U Mumba as they beat Telugu Titans 42-35 in Pro Kabaddi League season 8 match at The Sheraton Grand, Whitefield, here on Saturday.

The Mumbai team dominated most parts of the match with Abhishek scoring 15 raid points and Fazel Atrachali picking six tackle points. Adarsh clinched a Super 10 for the Titans but did not get the required backup to challenge Mumbai in the second match of the night.

U Mumba started the match aggressively with Abhishek Singh's speedy hand touches giving them points. Rahul Sethpal and Fazel Atrachali ensured their defence was compact too as Mumbai raced into an early lead. They got their first all-out in the seventh minute to open a healthy lead.

But Titans, fresh from their victory against Jaipur Pink Panthers, staged a comeback. Adarsh was the hero for the Titans as his multiple raids allowed them to reduce the Mumbai men on the mat. Two super tackles by U Mumba gave them valuable points, but Titans got their all out with two minutes remaining.

At half time, Mumbai had a five-point lead with scores of 22-17 but the momentum was with the Telugu team.

Mumbai ensured there were no immediate slip-ups in the second half as captain Fazel Atrachali raced to a High 5. Ajith Kumar also got into the act, getting important raid points to ensure his in-form teammate Abhishek S'ngh doesn't spend too much time on the dugout.

Surinder Singh and Adarsh T. continued to try their level best to bring Titans back in the game, but they trailed by eight points with 10 minutes on the clock.

Adarsh's raiding helped Titans reduce the gap in the closing minutes as Mumbai's defence started leaking points. But a 2-point raid by Ajinkya Pawar ensured U Mumba retained a seven-point gap in the final minute.

Adarsh picked a Super 10 for his efforts but Mumbai had too big a lead for him to wipe out single-handedly.

--IANS

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