Chaudhari inspires UP to title triumph

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Rahul Chaudhari led Uttar Pradesh to a remarkable 15-13 win over Rajasthan in the men’s final of the 63rd Senior National kabaddi championship here on Sunday.

UP trailed for a majority of the fixture, and stayed in contention only due to Chaudhari’s persistence. The raider scored all seven of his side’s points, but Rajasthan still led 10-7. Then, a couple of defiant ‘super-tackles’ by B. Arvind and Rahul Kumar helped UP pull level.

At 13-all, Chaudhari — he plays for Telugu Titans in the Pro Kabaddi League — returned one more time. He gained a touch on Nanveet Gautam, and a few seconds later, the fate of the championship was sealed when Rajasthan’s Deepak Hooda was caught out by the antis. In the women’s section, defending champion Indian Railways proved too good for Haryana, recording a 18-13 victory. Railways was well served by Tejaswini Bai, whose raids consistently troubled the Haryana catchers.

The champion held a 9-7 advantage at half-time, and after the restart, Haryana did fight back.

The score was level at 11-all at one stage, but from here, Railways pulled ahead. Its raiders played safe, ensuring no way back for Haryana.

The results: Final: Men: Rajasthan 15 bt UP 13. Women: Indian Railways 18 bt Haryana 13.

Semifinals: Men: Rajasthan 29 bt Services 27; UP 25 bt Haryana 17. Women: Indian Railways 23 bt HP 14; Haryana 17 bt Maharashtra 15.