Rajput and Bhainswal guide Gujarat Giants to key win over Tamil Thalaivas

A Super 10 from Mahendra Rajput and a High 5 from Parvesh Bhainswal helped the Gujarat Giants beat the Tamil Thalaivas 43-33. With this win, the Giants cut the gap to fourth-placed Bengaluru Bulls to just four points.

The game got off to a cagey start, as both sides matched each other blow-for-blow to stay level on the scoreboard. Rakesh’s terrific Toe Touch and Girish Ernak’s stellar Block broke the stalemate as the Giants pulled ahead on the scoreboard.

Two more touch points for Gujarat left the Thalaivas with a solitary man on the mat and the Giants’ defence took care of the final man to inflict the game’s first All Out and take a five-point lead.

A 5-2 run from the Thalaivas cut the deficit to just two, but the Giants responded to this surge with three unanswered to push their lead back up to five. A touch point from Manjeet and a tackle point from the defence helped the Thalaivas go into the break trailing by just three points.

Two unanswered points from the Thalaivas at the start of the second half left the Giants with only two men on the mat.  Himanshu tagged both defenders before sprinting past the midline to inflict an All Out on Gujarat and give the Thalaivas a three-point lead. 

The Giants responded to this setback with a 4-1 run to bring parity to the scoreline. Gujarat continued to pile points on the scoreboard and reduced the Thalaivas to only Manjeet on the mat, who was left immobile by a sensational tackle from Sunil Kumar, which helped the Giants inflict an All Out. 

The Giants embarked on a 4-2 run post the All Out to extend their advantage to six points. A two-point raid from Rajput followed by another touch point from Pardeep Kumar left the Thalaivas with only Bhavani Rajput on the mat.

The raider picked up the bonus before being pinned down by Sunil as the skipper helped the Giants inflict an All Out and take a 10-point lead.

Both teams added four points to their total in the final few minutes of the game, as Gujarat secured a huge win in their bid for a playoff berth. 

Top Performers

Gujarat Giants

Best Raider – Mahendra Rajput (10 Raid Points)

Best Defender – Parvesh Bhainswal (5 Tackle Points)

Tamil Thalaivas 

Best Raider – Himanshu (7 Raid Points)

Best Defender – Sagar (4 Tackle Points)