PKL 8: U Mumba decimate Bengaluru Bulls

Bengaluru, Jan 26 (IANS) U Mumba thrashed Bengaluru Bulls 45-34 in the Vivo Pro Kabaddi League Season 8 at The Sheraton Grand, Whitefield, here on Wednesday.

Abhishek Singh scored 11 raid points for Mumbai and was ably supported by Ajith Kumar with 8. But it was the defence that won them the encounter with Rahul Sethpal clinching a High 5 (7 tackle points plus 1 bonus point).

The Mumbai defence, marshalled by Fazel Atrachali, ensured the Bulls captain Pawan Sehrawat spent a lot of time in the dugout. Pawan did secure his Super 10 but didn't get enough support from his teammates to challenge U Mumba.

U Mumba started the match on the front foot with their raider Abhishek Singh upsetting the Bulls defenders. His clinical hand touches gave Mumbai an early advantage while Fazel Atrachali's tackle on Pawan Sehrawat ensured the Bulls captain remained in the dugout. The Mumbai side inflicted an all out in the 5th minute to take a 6-point lead.

But Pawan was in no mood to let Mumbai run away with the game. His 3-point Super Raid in the 7th minute shifted the balance of the match towards his team as they got closer to inflicting an all out.

Two Super Tackles by Rahul Sethpal helped Mumbai fight back, but they eventually conceded the all out in the 17th minute to level the scores. Pawan Sehrawat got his Super 10 in the final minutes of the first half which ended 22-20 with Mumbai in the lead. Interestingly, both U Mumba and Bengaluru Bulls had exactly 13 raid points before the interval.

The second half started with Mumbai clinching another all out. Abhishek Singh completed his Super 10 as they opened an early 7-point lead. The Bulls immediately fought back and reduced the gap to just 4 by the end of the 10th minute.

But U Mumba's defence stepped up with captain Fazel Atrachali putting his body on the line to pull off the tackles. Mumbai sent both Pawan and Bharat to the bench to increase the points gap to 8 with five minutes remaining.

U Mumba got their 3rd all out with 3 minutes remaining to open a 12-point lead. That proved too much for the Bulls to conquer as Mumbai pulled off an important victory in the race for a playoff spot.