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The action continued in the Kabaddi Masters Dubai 2018 as Asian heavyweights Iran took to the mat against Argentina at the Al Wasl Sports Club in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
The second day of the tournament saw the Group B sides clash in the first match of the day as Iran hoped to continue their strong start to the tournament after a dominating performance against fellow Asian nation Korea Republic.
Iran defeated the Korea Republic with a scoreline of 35-20 putting on a strong all-round performance that saw both their raiders and defenders rise to the occasion and secure the win.
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Iran came into the tournament resting their key players - Fazel Atracheli, Meraj Sheykh, Abolfazl Maghsoudlou and Abozar Mighani but the squad in Dubai was up to the task as they did not let the absence of their stars affect their performance.
Mohammad Nabibaksh, Mohammad Malak and Mohammad Maghsoudlu were the major performers against the Korean Republic side as Iran were consistent throughout the two halves.
Argentina's Kabaddi team were making their appearance on the world stage after the Kabaddi World Cup in India back in 2016 and hoping to make an impact but they were up against the might of the Iranians. The football-dominated nation is newcomers in the Kabaddi circuit and hoped they could give a fight to the powerful nations of Kabaddi at the Kabaddi Masters Dubai.
Iran showed their might as they put on a dominating display against the Argentine side in the Group B clash winning with a huge score of 54-24.
Iran's Emad Sedhaghatnia was the star man for Iran in the absence of yesterday's stars Mohammad Maghsoudlou and Mohammad Nabibaksh, who was rested tonight. Mohammad Ghorbani led the Iranian side and was strong in his raids too.
Emad Sedhaghatnia scored a Super 10 which included a stellar five-point raid dismantling the Argentina defence. However, the Argentines showed great heart during the entire match even managing to score an all-out on Iran.
#1 Argentina start strongly in the match to much surprise
The tie was expected to be an easy one for the experienced campaigners Iran despite some of their stars missing considering that Argentina did not have much international experience in the sport. However, the South Americans surprised everyone and started the match on a strong note defensively running into an early lead in the match.
Their lead raiders Mariano Pascual and Nahuel Lopez looked in good confidence going against the Iranian defensive line and managed to score a couple of points. The strong start by the Argentine side came across as a pleasant surprise to fans of the sport who did not expect it from the newcomers of the sport against a seasoned Iranian side.
#2 Iran weather the storm and assert their control over the match
Despite the strong start by the Argentina side, Iran stood firm and quickly got into their groove in the match taking control of the match and running into a quick lead in the match.
The Iranian defence started to display their strength and managed to nullify the initial promise shown by the Argentinian raiders.
Iranian raiders Emad Sedaghatnia, Mohammad Taghi and captain Mohammad Ghorbani were the major perpetrators of the Iranian comeback and ensured that the Asian heavyweights stood in a commanding position in the match.
#3 Emad Sedaghatnia scores a massive Super Raid to rattle Argentina
Iran had run away into a commanding lead in the match with two all-outs to their credit and had made it very tough for Argentina to score points in the match.
To further add to the misery of the South Americans, Iran's lead raider tonight Emad Sedaghatnia produced a superb effort to take out five Argentinian defenders with a 'Super Raid' just before the end of the first half.
He displayed great upper body strength to escape his tacklers as he wrestled away on the left corner getting his hand past the mid-line to get the 5 points to his credit.
#4 Iran continue to extend their lead in the match
The second half started pretty much on a similar note as the first ended with Iran running riot on the Argentinian side with their all-round dominance on the mat.
The defence was not leaking any easy points for the South Americans and the raiders continued to score quick points as they extended their lead to 30+ points in the match. The Iranians were on course for a massive scoreline in the match.
#5 Argentina manage to score an all-out on the Iranian side
Iran had taken a huge lead in the match with a 37-point advantage over the Argentina side and were headed into the final five minutes of the match to close out the easy win in their second match in Dubai.
However, Argentina had some fight left in them and showed great spirit on the mat taking their score into double digits.
The defence showed great resilience as they tackled all the top Iranian raiders in the match and Argentina's Federico Gramajo and Mariano Pascual were solid in their raids to inflict the first all-out in the match.
Even though Argentina ended up losing the match by 30 points, this all-out is a testament to their spirit of the game.
What did you think about Iran's performance? Sound off your opinions in the comments section below!
