Atrachali: We are lucky we have Siddharth Desai

U Mumba put on another magical display as they triumphed over Haryana Steelers by 42-32 on Wednesday. In the post-match press conference, captain Fazel Atrachali and raider Siddharth Desai took questions for their side whereas coach Rambir Singh Khokhar represented Haryana Steelers.

U Mumba

Q. Fazel, good win for the team. But how do you assess the defence?

Fazel Atrachali: It may not have been the most refined performance from the defence but it’s a long season. These things are quite normal. The good thing is we can assess the shortcomings and focus on rectifying them. It was important to come away with a win and I’m happy we managed that.

Q. Siddharth was outstanding yet again. What are your thoughts on his impact so far?

Fazel Atrachali: We are lucky to have him. We really are. Every time we are in the hunt for points, he delivers. When he’s on the mat, we aren’t worried. The good thing is that he’s comfortable on both sides. He’s as good a left raider as a right raider. He’s a star for U Mumba.

Q. Siddharth, you’ve been outstanding so far. At this point, teams will start preparing to play against you. Will that alter your approach?

Siddharth Desai: I try and study how the opponents are going to line up before the game. I see who they have in their Right and Left Cover and try to exploit any weakness they might have. I’ll continue my study of the opponent team to make sure I don’t have any issues scoring points off them.

Q. Your next game is a derby against Puneri Paltan, the only team you played against but didn’t beat. How are you going to approach it?

Fazel Atrachali: To us, the name of the opponent doesn’t matter. We go in with the mindset to win each game. The result may or may not go in our favour, but our mindset will remain the same.

Haryana Steelers

Q. What are your thoughts on the performance?

Rambir Singh Khokhar: In defence, both our Corners had a tough night. That was probably the only big issue we had tonight. And in offence, one of our raiders could score consistently. If one of our secondary raiders had complimented Monu Goyat’s performance, the result could have been different.

Q. Next game is against Dabang Delhi K.C. How do you assess them?

Rambir Singh Khokhar: The difference between our last game against U Mumba and this game is that of day and night. We’ve studied our shortcomings and worked on them. Had a couple of things gone our way, we could have won this game. But tomorrow is a different day and a different opponent. We’ll prepare accordingly.

Q. Any specific strategy against Dabang Delhi K.C.?

Rambir Singh Khokhar: I can’t reveal much but I’ll say that raiding is going to be the key to beating them. They have a very experienced defence and our raiders will have to bring their A-game tomorrow.