Odisha juggernauts ended Chennai Quick Guns’ impressive winning streak with a 10-point victory in the inaugural Ultimate Kho Kho on Wednesday at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Mahalunge, Pune.
Odisha Juggernauts won their third game in a row. Odisha Juggernauts not only moved into the top two on the points table with 12 points, but they also completed a league double over Chennai Quick Guns. They had previously won by eight points.
Nilesh Jadhav led the Odisha Juggernauts with 15 points, including five brilliant dives. Skipper Milind Chavarekar and Suraj Lande chipped in with nine and eight points, respectively.
P Narasayya and Manoj Patil each scored eight points for the Chennai Quick Guns.
Odisha Juggernauts didn’t let Chennai Quick Guns score easy points in the first seven minutes, with Gowtham MK and Jagannatha Murmu securing dream runs of 2.33 minutes and 2.59 minutes, respectively.
Chennai Quick Guns entered the game with three consecutive victories.
Despite in-form Ramji Kashyap’s 2.23-minute stay, the Odisha Juggernauts responded well to level the scores within the first five minutes of the second turn before finishing the first innings with a 28-19 lead.
Odisha Juggernauts all-rounder Subhasis Santra earned four bonus points for his 3.04-minute stay as Chennai Quick Guns managed only a five-point lead at the end of the third turn, 37-32.
Odisha Juggernauts scored 19 more points in the final quarter to finish the game comfortably with a 51-41 score.
In the second match of the day, Mumbai Khiladis will face Rajasthan Warriors later tonight.
Odisha Juggernauts will face Rajasthan Warriors on Thursday, while Gujarat Giants will face Telugu Yoddhas.
The first season of India’s first franchise-based league featured six teams: the Chennai Quick Guns, Gujarat Giants, Mumbai Khiladis, Odisha Juggernauts, Rajasthan Warriors, and Telugu Yoddhas.
Amit Burman promotes Ultimate Kho Kho in collaboration with the Kho Kho Federation of India. The final will be held on September 4th.
Prasanta Patnaik 
amfnews