Parteek Dahiya powers Gujarat Giants to big win over Puneri Paltan

HYDERABAD: Parteek Dahiya’s brilliant raiding powered the Gujarat Giants to a 51-39 victory over the high-flying Puneri Paltan in Season 9 of the Pro Kabaddi League at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium in Hyderabad on Tuesday. The Giants victory broke a five-match winning streak for the Paltan.

A blistering start by the Paltan saw it race into an early lead, with the Giants finding it tough on the mat. However, it all changed within moments as captain Chandran Ranjit caught out Aslam Inamdar and Sanket Sawant to bring the Giants back into the game. Despite the resurgence, it was the Paltan who inflicted the first ‘All Out’ of the game, to take a 15-8 lead.

The ‘All Out’ galvanised the Giants with Ranjit and Parteek Dahiya combining to not just engineer a comeback but also get the Giants an ‘All Out’ of its own, to make it a one-point game. From there, the match ebbed and flowed with both teams trading points constantly. The teams went into the break with Paltan leading 22-21.

The Giants, however, roared out of the blocks in the second half, Dahiya in particular was devastating on almost every raid he went for. It inflicted a second ‘All Out’ on the Paltan to take the lead for the first time in the game at 31-25. The Giants kept the pressure up with Dahiya in particular on a streak that was destroying Pune at regular intervals. A second ‘All Out’ followed as the Giants extended into a 44-32 lead. It never let the lead slip, registering a morale-boosting and momentous win. For the Giants, it was Dahiya who starred yet again with a tally of 19 points and was the driving force for his side.

RESULTS: Gujarat Giants 51 bt Puneri Paltan 39; U Mumba 33 lost to Haryana Steelers 35