Kabaddi World Cup: India bounce back in style

AHMEDABAD: After the opening night blues, the mighty Indians got their 2016 Kabaddi World Cup campaign back on track with an emphatic 54-20 win over Australia here on Saturday.
Jolted after their loss to the South Koreans on Friday, Indians showed why they are the best in the business as they outclassed the men from Down Under by handing all-outs four times before the final whistle was blown.
The famed Indian defenders seemed to have learnt their lessons as they worked like a well-oiled machine, throwing the debutants' raiders out at will. Skipper Anup marshalled his troops well, unleashing India's young and talented raider Pardeep Narwal to fetch early points and race into lead.
He then brought on the lanky Ajay Thakur and Nitin Tomar and all-rounder Sandeep Narwal to extend the lead.
Having acquired a sizable lead going into the second half, the Indians slowed down the pace of the game, consolidated their lead and made substitutions, bringing in local lad Kiran Parmar towards the later part of the game.
The Aussies were quick on their feet as they relied on bonus points to keep their score ticking but clearly lacked in the technical aspect of the game they are still learning. Anup said the win will give confidence to the boys. "The plan was to put pressure on them from the beginning and we managed to execute our plans well," the skipper said. He said that making changes was their strategy to prepare well for their tie against Bangladesh on Tuesday. "He have had close matches with Bangladesh, the last played in South Asian Games in Guwahati. We have to be at our best in order to get past them," he said.
The best match of the night was played out between Poland and Kenya with both teams showing their brute strength on the mat. But after an enthralling 40 minutes of play, it was the men from the African nation who prevailed over the Polish team 54-48.