Gujarat Giants will take heart when they face Tamil Thalaivas in their penultimate league match of Pro Kabaddi Season 8 at the Sheraton Grand, Whitefield in Bengaluru on Friday.
With only the top-six of the 12 teams promised a spot in the PKL playoffs, the eighth-placed Gujarat Giants will be hoping to make up ground. They have been unbeaten in their last three matches, while the Tamil Thalaivas have lost their last six matches.
After an underwhelming start with just two wins from the first 10 matches, Gujarat Giants have made a stellar comeback with six wins and two ties in their next 10 outings.
In a must-win scenario in the previous fixture, Gujarat managed to stay alive with a 31-31 tie against Puneri Paltan on Monday.
Gujarat Giants vs Tamil Thalaivas: What the numbers say
Meanwhile, the Tamil Thalaivas were thumped 52-21 to defending champions Bengal Warriors on Wednesday. The Thalaivas’ defence that has managed to score at an average of 9.57 tackle points per match, the third-best this season, could garner just four tackle points in the match.
Tamil Thalaivas have struggled to score more than 10 tackle points in each of their last five encounters. On the other hand, Gujarat Giants have scored in excess of 10 tackle points in three of their last five outings.
In their 20 matches so far, Gujarat Giants have been all-out on 22 occasions, the third least amongst all teams while Tamil Thalaivas have been all-out on 33 instances, the joint-highest alongside Telugu Titans in PKL season 8.
Gujarat Giants vs Tamil Thalaivas: The top players of PKL 8
For Gujarat Giants, Rakesh Sungroya has been the best raider with 115 raid points from 19 matches including four super 10s. Amongst the defenders, Parvesh Bhainswal has accounted for 47 tackle points with nine super tackles, the most by any player in PKL season 8. Meanwhile, Manjeet has top-scored for Tamil Thalaivas’ this season with 154 raid points from 19 matches while Sagar has topped the charts for defenders with 78 tackle points.
What Gujarat Giants need to do to qualify for PKL 8 playoffs
With the top six teams at the end of the league stages set to qualify for the Pro Kabaddi playoffs, Gujarat Giants need to win against Tamil Thalaivas to stay in the race of PKL playoffs qualification.
A loss, or even a tie, against Tamil Thalaivas will end Gujarat Giants’ chances of making it to the PKL playoffs.
Gujarat Giants are currently eighth in the PKL standings with 57 points from 20 outings. Bengaluru Bulls is sixth, with 60 points from 21 matches.
On the other hand, Tamil Thalaivas with 47 points from 21 matches are at the penultimate position and are out of contention for the playoffs.
Gujarat Giants vs Tamil Thalaivas head-to-head record
Gujarat Giants and Tamil Thalaivas have played each other five times in the Pro Kabaddi League with Gujarat Giants winning three of them.
Gujarat Giants won the reverse fixture 37-35 over Tamil Thalaivas earlier this season.
Where to watch Gujarat Giants vs Tamil Thalaivas live?
Live telecast of the Gujarat Giants vs Tamil Thalaivas Pro Kabaddi Season 8 match will be broadcast on Star Sports 2 and Star Sports 2 HD. The Hindi telecast will be on Star Sports 1 and Star Sports 1 HD TV channels in India.
Live streaming of the Gujarat Giants vs Tamil Thalaivas match will be on Disney+ Hotstar.
