Match 7 – Telugu Titans vs Bengal Warriors

Overview:

• Favourite teams facing tough situations, established stars finding it difficult to underline their aura, new stars emerging, match decisions on the last raids, all star-studded big teams lost a match each, all this and more taking place in the sports city of Vizag

• The last day of the first leg of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3 will witness a match of the opening leg host Telugu Titans riding on a high after two successive victories taking on the challenge from Bengal Warriors, who will be kick-starting their campaign in this exciting new season

• Telugu Titans will leave no stone unturned to earn full points from the last league match at home. This will get them the all-important initial start, thus giving a psychological edge in the remaining legs

• With ev

Overview:

• Favourite teams facing tough situations, established stars finding it difficult to underline their aura, new stars emerging, match decisions on the last raids, all star-studded big teams lost a match each, all this and more taking place in the sports city of Vizag

• The last day of the first leg of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3 will witness a match of the opening leg host Telugu Titans riding on a high after two successive victories taking on the challenge from Bengal Warriors, who will be kick-starting their campaign in this exciting new season

• Telugu Titans will leave no stone unturned to earn full points from the last league match at home. This will get them the all-important initial start, thus giving a psychological edge in the remaining legs

• With every match, Telugu Titans are looking more confident and better in self-belief. From attack to defense, every piece of the game seems to be falling in place and the most important factor - their star, Rahul Chaudhari has sent out the message loud and clear that he is back!

• On the other hand Bengal Warriors, definitely want to start their campaign on a winning note, something they have not been able to do in the last two seasons. However, they are up against the team in form and whom they have beaten only once in four meetings

• This season, Bengal Warriors have a reworked team structure. While their star raider Nitin Madane hasn’t fully recovered, the team has included star all-rounder Nitin Tomar of Services. A change in coaching staff- Pratap Shetty, coach of Bharat Petroleum has been roped in. Thus elevating the talent of his institutional team in Star Sports Pro Kabaddi

• More importantly, this will be a battle between two coaches and two coaching styles – Pratap Shetty’s aggressive attacking style vs. Dr. Ramesh Bhendigiri’s tactical play

Challenges for Bengal Warriors:

• The big concern for Bengal Warriors will be to shed the tag of being a losing team

• Nitin Tomar and Nitin More give the team a better balance. Nilesh Shinde will have to rework his partnership with Girish Ernak who moved from Patna Pirates

• The team has been better at defense than raiding. It’s their defense that won them matches last season

• Bengal’s defense will have to get their act right against the Titans’ raiding trio – Sukesh Hegde, Rahul Chaudhari and Rohit Baliyan

• Moreover, against the all aggressive Titans, it is tough to play on the ‘Do-or-Die’ raid for a long time, especially once the home team has taken a huge leap

Challenges for Telugu Titans:

• Telugu Titans is likely to run into a settled Bengal defense, because they are a Maharashtra unit and have played with each other

• They will try to keep Rahul Chaudhari off the mat as long as possible. And after yesterday’s match, Rohit Baliyan will also be on their radar

• As a team though, the Titans will have to maintain the lead and not get carried away. Once Rahul goes off the court, the team appears shaky despite the presence of veteran Dharmaraj Cheralathan

Key Battles:

Rahul Chaudhari v/s Nilesh Shinde

Nilesh Shinde is known for ankle holds when raiders make the turn. But Rahul Chaudhari uses his long reach more to attack. So, Nilesh will use his next best weapon – the chain tackle to counter the running hand touch. Therefore, Rahul’s best bet will be to target Nilesh himself with his quick footwork.

Jang Kun Lee v/s Rahul Kumar

With Manoj Kumar injured, Rahul Kumar will take place at left cover. It will be up to Rahul to stop Jang Kun Lee whose speedy footwork enables him to attack the right corner and right in before attempting the bonus. Lee attacks from the front so it will be up to the left cover to go for the block/dash.

Players to watch out for:

Rohit Baliyan

Rohit has proved that he is someone to be counted on – raring to go, a team player and a star in the making. Today though, he will have to avoid Nilesh Shinde’s ankle holds when he goes for the bonus points. But Nilesh Shinde’s experience could make Rohit pay for every small mistake.

Nitin Tomar

The other deadly Nitin in the Bengal camp, showed his prowess in the Nationals as part of the Services team. What sets him apart is his frontal stack, speedy footwork and his ability to cover the whole court during his raid. Tomar is at his fittest which makes life tougher for the Titans’ defense.

ery match, Telugu Titans are looking more confident and better in self-belief. From attack to defense, every piece of the game seems to be falling in place and the most important factor - their star, Rahul Chaudhari has sent out the message loud and clear that he is back!

• On the other hand Bengal Warriors, definitely want to start their campaign on a winning note, something they have not been able to do in the last two seasons. However, they are up against the team in form and whom they have beaten only once in four meetings

• This season, Bengal Warriors have a reworked team structure. While their star raider Nitin Madane hasn’t fully recovered, the team has included star all-rounder Nitin Tomar of Services. A change in coaching staff- Pratap Shetty, coach of Bharat Petroleum has been roped in. Thus elevating the talent of his institutional team in Star Sports Pro Kabaddi

• More importantly, this will be a battle between two coaches and two coaching styles – Pratap Shetty’s aggressive attacking style vs. Dr. Ramesh Bhendigiri’s tactical play

Challenges for Bengal Warriors:

• The big concern for Bengal Warriors will be to shed the tag of being a losing team

• Nitin Tomar and Nitin More give the team a better balance. Nilesh Shinde will have to rework his partnership with Girish Ernak who moved from Patna Pirates

• The team has been better at defense than raiding. It’s their defense that won them matches last season

• Bengal’s defense will have to get their act right against the Titans’ raiding trio – Sukesh Hegde, Rahul Chaudhari and Rohit Baliyan

• Moreover, against the all aggressive Titans, it is tough to play on the ‘Do-or-Die’ raid for a long time, especially once the home team has taken a huge leap

Challenges for Telugu Titans:

• Telugu Titans is likely to run into a settled Bengal defense, because they are a Maharashtra unit and have played with each other

• They will try to keep Rahul Chaudhari off the mat as long as possible. And after yesterday’s match, Rohit Baliyan will also be on their radar

• As a team though, the Titans will have to maintain the lead and not get carried away. Once Rahul goes off the court, the team appears shaky despite the presence of veteran Dharmaraj Cheralathan

Key Battles:

Rahul Chaudhari v/s Nilesh Shinde

Nilesh Shinde is known for ankle holds when raiders make the turn. But Rahul Chaudhari uses his long reach more to attack. So, Nilesh will use his next best weapon – the chain tackle to counter the running hand touch. Therefore, Rahul’s best bet will be to target Nilesh himself with his quick footwork.

Jang Kun Lee v/s Rahul Kumar

With Manoj Kumar injured, Rahul Kumar will take place at left cover. It will be up to Rahul to stop Jang Kun Lee whose speedy footwork enables him to attack the right corner and right in before attempting the bonus. Lee attacks from the front so it will be up to the left cover to go for the block/dash.

Players to watch out for:

Rohit Baliyan

Rohit has proved that he is someone to be counted on – raring to go, a team player and a star in the making. Today though, he will have to avoid Nilesh Shinde’s ankle holds when he goes for the bonus points. But Nilesh Shinde’s experience could make Rohit pay for every small mistake.

Nitin Tomar

The other deadly Nitin in the Bengal camp, showed his prowess in the Nationals as part of the Services team. What sets him apart is his frontal stack, speedy footwork and his ability to cover the whole court during his raid. Tomar is at his fittest which makes life tougher for the Titans’ defense.