Haryana Steelers kept its composure under pressure to register its third win of the ProKabaddi League this season with a 27-25 victory against a fighting Dabang Delhi, which paid the price for and faltering at crucial moments.
The three key players for Dabang — the Iranian duo of Merajj Sheykh and Abolfazl Maghsodlou in attack and Nilesh Shinde in defence — all tried their best but it was the Haryana side that won the battle of nerves.
There was little to separate the teams with both sides claiming the honours in one half each before Haryana prevailed by the slimmest of margins. While Haryana led comfortably 17-9 at half-time, Delhi fought back to level scores twice — first at 19 and then at 24 — before going ahead for the first time with two minutes left. But Surjeet Singh’s tenacity helped the team edge ahead in the last minute before a desperate Sheykh stumbled in his last raid.
The result: Steelers 27 (Deepak Kumar 7, Surjeet Singh 5, Vikas Kandola 4) bt Dabang 25 (Abolfazl Maghsodlou 8, Meraj Sheykh 6, Nilesh Shinde 5).
