Defending champions Odisha Juggernauts returned to winning ways in the 2023-24 Ultimate Kho Kho season with a 31-28 victory over Mumbai Khiladis, while Telugu Yoddhas defeated Rajasthan Warriors 38-28 by a big margin in Cuttack on Wednesday.
The Juggernauts have now secured the top spot in the points table with eight points from three matches, while Telugu Yoddhas have claimed the second position with a total of six points.
Chasing first, Mumbai Khiladis made a balanced start to the match as they did not give any dream run bonus points to the defending champions early on. However, they only managed to grab 14 points in the first turn as Odisha returned to the contest by claiming 14 points during the following turn.
Mumbai went into the second inning with a point advantage courtesy of a dream run bonus point in the second turn. They further won 12 points in the third turn and allowed Odisha to earn a dream run bonus point as well.
The last turn turned out to be in the favour of the defending champions as they attained 16 points with sublime attacking to register a remarkable victory.
Telugu Yoddhas defeat Rajasthan Warriors
Earlier, Rahul Mandal proved to be the star of the match for Telugu Yoddhas with 10 points. Pratik Waikar and Aditya Ganpule also contributed to the team’s victory by staying on the mat for more than three minutes to earn dream run bonus points during the defence.
Rajasthan Warriors took a dream run bonus point early on in the first turn before Telugu Yoddhas fought back valiantly and claimed 18 points while chasing.
The Yoddhas showcased the same determination when they switched to defence as they earned two dream run bonus points, allowing Rajasthan to grab only 12 points.
Telugu Yoddhas began the second inning on a positive note and took a significant lead after scoring 18 points in the third turn. Rajasthan earned a dream run bonus point, but they failed to surpass Telugu’s score in the last turn and only managed to secure 14 points.