Ajay Kumar’s crucial point off the buzzer raid ensured Gujarat Giants tied 31-31 against Puneri Paltan in Pro Kabaddi Season 8 at the Sheraton Grand, Whitefield in Bengaluru on Monday. The tie allowed Gujarat Giants to stay in the race for the PKL playoffs qualification.

Rakesh Sungroya was the top scorer for Gujarat Giants with a super 10 while Hadi Oshtorak ended with three tackle points.

For Puneri Paltan, Mohit Goyat bagged a super 10 whereas Sombir scored a high 5.

Trailing for most of the match, Puneri Paltan made a stellar comeback in the second half to inflict an all-out on Gujarat Giants and level scores at 28-28 with just over three minutes of play remaining.

Rakesh Sungroya’s two-point raid soon put Gujarat Giants into the lead but a stumbling defence allowed Puneri Paltan to make a comeback. Vishal Bharadwaj’s ankle hold on Rakesh allowed Puneri Paltan to gain a slender one-point lead going into the final raid but Ajay Kumar managed to return with a point to end the match in a thrilling tie.

Earlier, Puneri Paltan drew first blood as their raiding duo of Mohit Goyat and Aslam Inamdar helped them build on an early 3-0 lead. However, Ajay Kumar’s super raid infused much-needed energy in the Gujarat Giants’ setup as they scored back-to-back points and managed to inflict an all-out on Puneri Paltan.

Puneri Paltan looked to gain back the momentum with some quick single point raids but an all-rounded Gujarat Giants’ attack managed to maintain the lead to go 21-16 into half-time.

The tie meant Gujarat Giants’ remained at the sixth spot in the PKL standings with 57 points with two games left to play while Puneri Paltan leapfrogged U Mumba to move to seventh place with 55 points from 19 outings. The top six teams at the end of the league phase will qualify for the PKL playoffs.

Gujarat Giants will be up against Tamil Thalaivas next on Friday.