Bhatinda, 13 September 2014: Raider Manminder Singh was back on the winning trail as his fourth Man of the Match award was the key to Rapper Honey Singh’s Yo Yo Tigers edging aside Punjab Thunder 61-58 in a gripping first match as the triple header in Bhatinda got off to a great start on Saturday night.

Baljeet Singh of Punjab Thunder is in action to earn a point for his team

This was the fourth win for Yo Yo Tigers, who now have eight points from six matches, while Punjab Thunder have five points with two wins and one tie against three losses. The eight points took Yo Yo Tigers to tied second place with Lahore Lions, who also have eight points but from five matches.

Played at Bhatinda City’s Hockey Stadium at Rajindra College the clash between Yo Yo Tigers and Punjab Thunder was an exciting one in which Punjab Thunder led for the first two quarters before conceding the lead to Yo Yo, who managed to hold on to it at the finish.

With the capacity crowd egging on the players, the opening quarter saw aggressive raids and the stoppers had a tough time with Kulveer Singh of Yo Yo who grounded Gurpeet Singh of Punjab Thunder just about managing to hold the flag high for the defenders. Both the teams maintained an aggressive stance as Punjab Thunder led the score board by a point at 15 – 14 at the end of first quarter.

The second quarter was a tense battle with Punjab Thunder managing to keep in check Yo Yo Tigers raiders. Punjab Thunder managed to edge ahead further. As Punjab Thunders held the advantage in defence, they went seven points ahead. With 100% strike rate, Sultan Singh of Punjab Thunders was the star of the quarter. He showcased great speed and strength along with Baljeet Singh thereby assuring them lead at 31 – 24.

The third quarter was a crucial one for Yo-Yo Tigers who showed a great fightback. Initial break through by Yo-Yo Tigers helped them to bounce back and slowly they went ahead by one point. Nirvail Singh and Sohan Rurki of Yo-Yo Tigers were excellent in defence holding back Sultan Singh and Talwinder Singh’s raids.

Meanwhile Yo Yo Raider Manminder Singh found his form and rhythm alongwith Gursewak Singh Goldy and they took their lead on a path of recovery and with it moved ahead at 44 -43.

In the final quarter Yo-Yo Tigers were even more confident and Manminder Singh, who has been a pivot for them, was in brilliant form and gave Punjab Thunders little chance to hit back. Manminder finished with 20 successful raids and that was the main strength for his team.

The entire match was full of high energy where both the teams displayed great team spirit and efforts. Yo-Yo Tigers win over the Punjab Thunder resembled a disciplined approach of the winning team right from the beginning.

In terms of statistics, Yo-Yo Tigers had a raider strike rate of 93% and lead the defenders strike rate with 13 % success and 8 stops. Captain Manminder Singh, Sohan Rurki, Sandeep Kumar and Nirvail Singh were the star performers for the Tigers whose efforts led to a corroborated victory over the Punjab Thunders in the tournament. The final score was 61-58 in Yo-Yo Tigers’ favour.

• Man of the match: Manminder Singh Saran (Yo Yo Tigers)
• Best Raider: Manminder Singh- Yo Yo Tigers (20 raids)
• Best Stopper: (Yadwinder Singh-Punjab Thunders (5 stops)

Team position (Yo Yo Tigers Vs Punjab Thunder)

Wave World Kabaddi League fixtures for Bhatinda on September 14-15, 2014:

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