"Ashu is now fully fit and you won’t see any problem in the cover (position)"- UP Yoddhas coach confident of a better show ahead of home leg

The UP Yoddhas have made a disappointing start in the 2023 edition of the Pro Kabaddi League. They have only managed to secure two wins in seven matches and, this has, naturally, affected their position on the points tally.

The Yoddhas are currently languishing at the 10th position on the points table and would be wanting to make a turnaround. The Noida leg of the tournament begins on December 29 and this could well pave the way for a turnaround.

UP Yoddhas will be playing their next four matches at their home turf in a new venue at the Noida Indoor Stadium in Noida, Uttar Pradesh and would be excited to play in front of their home crowd. Ahead of the start of the home leg, coach Jasveer Singh sat down along with skipper Pardeep Narwal and star raider Surender Gill for the press conference.

UP Yoddhas have a few concerns going into their home leg and one of them is the cover region. This season they have done a lot of chopping and changing in that position but the coach clarified that it was largely due to Ashu Singh’s injury. But, now that he is fit, UP Yoddha won’t have to fret a lot about that.

“We have our concerns at ‘cover’. Ashu suffered an injury in National Games and he also sat out for 6-7 games because of that. He played in the last game and he performed quite well. His absence makes a big difference in the defense. However, he is now fully fit and you won’t see any problem in the cover in the upcoming games,” coach Jasveer Singh said at the press conference.

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“We haven’t been able to play as a team”- Pardeep Narwal

UP Yoddhas skipper Pardeep Narwal feels that the team hasn’t played as a unit so far and that is the biggest concern for them. He, however, hopes that the team will work on that and make a comeback.

Narwal said at the press conference:

“We haven’t been able to play as a team. We are practicing well but we haven’t been able to win the game. If we manage to play well as a team, bring efforts in all departments, then we ll surely perform better.”

UP Yoddha’s best raider this season, Surender Gill, also made his presence felt at the press conference. He touched upon his journey in PKL and how crucial advice from his seniors helped him improve his game.

“From the start, I learnt from my seniors. I learned from Nishant bhai, Monu Goyal and now Pardeep bhai. I learnt how to handle pressure and that has benefit me to earn points during the game,” Gill said.

UP Yoddhas will begin their home leg against Bengaluru Bulls at Noida Indoor Stadium on Friday.