Cuttack: Defending champions Odisha Juggernauts and Chennai Quick Guns played out a thrilling 34-34 draw after Gujarat Giants edged past Mumbai Khiladis 34-30 to register their second straight win in the ongoing second season of Ultimate Kho Kho at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium here, Tuesday.
Deepak Sahoo (8) scored the most points for the Juggernauts. Ramji Kashyap performed brilliantly for Chennai once again as he too scored eight points with three sparkling skydives. He also stayed on the mat for more than 5.28 minutes with Laxman Gawas to earn important dream run bonus points.
Juggernauts and Quick Guns went toe to toe in the first inning as they won 16 points each, with Chennai claiming two dream run bonus points as well.
The third turn saw Odisha going into aggressive mode and getting 18 points. Sahoo notched up six points for the team during the turn. The defending champions also avoided giving any dream run bonus points to their opponent. However, Quick Guns managed to win 18 points during the fourth turn to level the match.
Earlier, Abhinandan Patil’s splendid show (14 points) fashioned Gujarat Giants’ victory over Mumbai Khiladis. Faizankha Pathan, Suyash Gargate and Shubham Thorat also contributed to the Giants’ victory by staying on the mat for more than five minutes. For the Khiladis, Rohan Kore (8) scored the most points in the match.
The game began positively for the Khiladis as they earned a dream run bonus point in the first turn and allowed the Giants to secure only 14 points. However, Gujarat quickly turned the tide during turn 2 and claimed three dream run bonus points while defending.
They also allowed Mumbai only eight points with their sublime defence and carried the momentum forward in the second inning as well. The Giants notched up 14 points in turn 3 while Mumbai won a dream run bonus point as well. However, it was enough for Gujarat to register a victory despite Mumbai earning 20 points in the final turn.
Mumbai Khiladis will now be up against the hosts Odisha while Rajasthan Warriors will face Telugu Yoddhas Wednesday.