Ultimate Kho Kho: Chennai Quick Guns, Gujarat Giants reach the final

Gujarat Giants and Chennai Quick Guns made it to the final of the Ultimate Kho Kho on Thursday at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Cuttack.

Gujarat Giants got better of defending champions Odisha Juggernauts while Chennai Quick Guns defeated Telugu Yoddhas in closely fought semi-finals.

Gujarat Giants dominated the first innings as their opponents seemingly switched off. Odisha Juggernauts put in an improved show in the second half, but the nine-point advantage they conceded in the first proved too much to overcome.

Suyash Gargate and Sanket Kadam were the pick of the attackers for Gujarat Giants with six points each.

Odisha Juggernauts tried to come back late in the match but they went into the final turn with a slender five-point lead. The Gujarat Giants' attackers overcame that with ease in the final turn.

In the other semifinal, Telugu Yoddhas went down narrowly 29-31 to Chennai Quick Guns.

Despite Telugu Yoddhas seizing an early advantage, Chennai Quick Guns clawed their way back into the match with an impressive attacking performance in the final turn.

Finishing as runners-up in the inaugural season, Telugu Yoddhas missed their second consecutive final berth by just two points in the action-packed semi-final, setting up a third-place clash against Odisha Juggernauts on the finals day.

The team's captain, Pratik Waikar, was awarded the Best Attacker of the Match for his sensational performance, scoring the highest 14 points in the game.

Chennai Quick Guns’ first batch — Ramji Kashyap, Vijay Shinde, and Madan were the game-changers in the second semi-final as they spent four minutes and 18 seconds on the mat and earned three dream run points.