Pro Kabaddi League 2018: U.P. Yoddha's roller-coaster journey to the playoffs

PKL 2018 - Phase I - the ups and downs in the first 7 matches

The defense of the Yoddhas looked better in the very first match of their season.

The Yoddhas had a positive start to their season with a win (37-32) against the Tamil Thalaivas in their first match of the season. It was a complete performance for the Yoddhas with 18 raid and 10 tackle points, which seemed to signify a great season for them.

But a hat-trick of losses, following the win, due to poor defensive performances, gave hints that this season might go the same direction or even worse if the defensive lapses aren't rectified as soon as possible.

Their fifth match of the season was against a strong Bengal Warriors, but the Yoddhas held on their nerves to secure a tie (40-40) due to a terrific raiding performance. Prashanth Kumar Rai was the top scorer with 13 points. Their defense still displayed signs of inefficiency and they could manage just 8 tackle points.

But in the next two matches, the Yoddhas, especially their defense, came back strongly and won the encounters against Puneri Paltan and Dabang Delhi on the back of all-round performances.

So, this no-loss streak of 3 matches gave the Yoddhas fans hopes of better coordination from their side to clinch encounters. And these seven matches also showed how lethal the raiding trio - Rishank, Prashanth and Shrikant, were turning out to be.