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Kabaddi Masters Dubai 2018 got underway at the Al Wasl Sports Club in the city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates as perennial rivals India and Pakistan faced off against each other in the opening clash.
The two neighbouring countries locked horns on the Kabaddi mat after quite a while as they looked to take the advantage in the group stage of the Kabaddi Masters Dubai. The tournament, which has been considered as the warm-up for the soon-to-follow Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia.
The Pakistan side was led by their talismanic captain and all-rounder Nasir Ali, who has been a longstanding figure in the Pakistani Kabaddi team. Pakistani players came into this tournament on the back of the recently concluded Super Kabaddi League a month ago. Nasir Ali was the star of the tournament bagging the Man of the Series award with a huge tally of 68 points to his credit.
The Indian side was led by World Cup star performer and Tamil Thalaivas' lead raider Ajay Thakur and comprised of a host of Pro Kabaddi League stars. In the absence of India's former captain Anup Kumar, the responsibility lay on the shoulders of Thakur who was leading the side in his second tournament after the Asian Kabaddi Championships held in Iran, which Indian won beating the Republic of Korea in the final.
Indian team pulled off a great all-round performance owing to the heroics of captain Ajay Thakur to start the tournament on a high note as they beat rivals Pakistan with a final score of 36-20.
#1 Close start to the game as both sides defend strong
The two sides began the game on a strong note especially on the defensive side of things on the Kabaddi mat. The two corner pairs of the sides were holding the fort well and not allowing the raiders from the two sides to go on a rampage. Indian defenders Surender Nada and Mohit Chillar were their usual sturdy best as they did not allow the Pakistani raiders to get comfortable during their raids. Pakistani defense led by Nasir Ali and Wasim Sajjad also stood strong and did not allow the pair of Rahul Chaudhari and the 'Dubki King' Pardeep Narwal to gather easy points.
#2 Ajay Thakur is the standout raider in the first half
The match between the rivals was incredibly close from the start as the two sides did well defensively on the mat. However, there was only one raider who managed to make his mark on the game and it was none other than the Indian captain Ajay Thakur. The skipper led from the front as he managed to offset the struggling Rahul Chaudhari and Pardeep Narwal, who found it tough against the Pakistani defense.
Thakur moved swiftly all across the mat and scored the first point of the match and kept garnering points almost at will with his long reach and movement. He almost scored an all-out on Pakistan but his 4-point raid was overturned by the umpire review and Pakistan escaped. Ajay Thakur ended up with a tally of 8 points.
#3 After a close start, India run away to a 13-point lead in the first half
The game began on a pretty even note with the Pakistani team defending with steely resistance against the likes of Pardeep Narwal and Rahul Chaudhari. Ajay Thakur was the star of the first half using his experience and skills to keep the scoreboard ticking for the Indian side. India kept it going and their persistence paid off when they scored the first all-out of the match.
It proved to be the turning point as India capitalized and kept the momentum going, scoring another all-out as substitute Rohit Kumar raided well coming on to replace the ineffective Pardeep Narwal. The first half ended with a score of 22-9 in the favor of the Indians as they stamped their authority on the mat.
#4 Pakistan fail to recover in the second half as India dominate
The first half ended with Pakistan having just one man on the mat and India got the all-out with Ajay Thakur inflicting the blow on the rivals yet again with an easy escape across the midline. The second half continued along the similar lines as the first with the Pakistani raiders failing to put any pressure on the Indian defenders.
However, there was one silver lining for them with Mudassar getting the first 'Super Raid' of the tournament when he got three Indian defenders out after escaping from a Surender Nada hold. The Pakistani defence also got two 'Super Tackles' in the second half taking out Rohit Kumar and Rahul Chaudhari.
Ajay Thakur and Rohit Kumar worked well in tandem to keep the pressure on the Pakistan defence as the Indian team maintained their comfortable lead always being 15 points or more in the lead.
#5 Star raiders Pardeep and Rahul falter but India prevail in
Pro Kabaddi League raiding sensations Rahul Chaudhari and Pardeep Narwal, who are the top scorers in the league had an off-night as they struggled to get going against the steely Pakistani defenders. Pardeep Narwal was taken off by coach Srini Reddy in the first half and replaced by Rohit Kumar, who did well. Rahul Chaudhari was substituted in and out during the entire course of the match but just could not get into the scoring rhythm and cut a frustrating figure in the end.
However, the Indian team had the necessary depth and talent in their squad to overcome the low scores of their raiders as Ajay Thakur and co put on a dominating show, beating the Pakistan team with a score of 36-20.
