Manpreet Singh: Our fans enjoy our brand of kabaddi

Gujarat Fortunegiants beat Haryana Steelers in their final home game at The Arena by TransStadia on Thursday to record their first ever victory over them and go top of Zone A. Gujarat Fortunegiants were represented at the post-match press conference by captain Sunil Kumar, coach Manpreet Singh and key players Sachin and Parvesh Bhainswal while coach Rambir Singh Khokhar represented Haryana Steelers.

Gujarat Fortunegiants

Q: How does it feel getting your first victory over Haryana Steelers?

Manpreet Singh: It’s a fantastic feeling. We couldn’t get a win over them in the first four games we played but today everyone performed brilliantly.

Q: What are your strategies for the games ahead?

Manpreet Singh: I can’t tell you what our strategies are, but I can assure you we will continue to play as we have been playing. Gujarat Fortunegiants play a different brand of kabaddi that has made us very successful and we would like to continue playing that way. Our fans enjoy our brand of kabaddi which is of utmost importance to us, so we aren’t going to change that. You have to play according to the opposition. You cannot keep on playing in the same manner always.

Q: Rambir Singh Khokhar praised your defence today. What do you have to say about them?

Manpreet Singh: Our defence has been getting us points in almost every game. They have shown they are very versatile and can play positions other than their specialized ones as well. They have been giving their 100 per cent in each match and I am very proud of that fact. I hope they stay fit for long because they are about to be the stars of the future. Each of them has a different skill and they are all gifted players.    

Haryana Steelers

Q: What do you have to say about the loss today?

Rambir Singh Khokhar: Our main source of points, Vikash Khandola was kept quiet today. Both of our corners are young and inexperienced, and both of them committed a few mistakes today. This ensured Gujarat Fortunegiants ran away with the game. We could not coordinate between our defence and offence the way we’d have liked.

Q: Do you take away any positives from the game?

Rambir Singh Khokhar: A loss is a loss. We can say that we had stayed unbeaten against them before today but as such there are no real positives from today. Gujarat Fortunegiants are playing really well, especially their defence. But today it was their raiders who made the difference. Right from the first raid where Mahendra Ganesh Rajput went in and got a Super Raid against us. Sachin turned the game around in the second half, playing well on both the offence and defence.