Hyderabad, Oct 19 (IANS) Gaurav Khatri top-scored as defending champion Puneri Paltan kicked off their Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) Season 11 campaign with a clinical performance against Haryana Steelers at the GMCB Indoor Stadium here on Saturday. Khatri scored seven points as the Puneri Paltan won the game 35-25.

Pankaj Mohite, Mohit Goyat and Aman registered four points each while Aslam Inamdar finished the day with five points to his name.

The Puneri Paltan captain Inamdar started proceedings for the day for the defending champions with a quick raid. However, the Haryana Steelers kept up pace with the Puneri Paltan, and both sides traded blows in the early exchanges, and neither were able to establish a significant lead.

Midway through the first half, the Puneri Paltan led 7-6 and the Haryana Steelers were finding it difficult to get going. Gaurav Khatri inflicted an All Out on the Haryana Steelers midway through the first half, which helped the Puneri Paltan take a 6-point lead.

Gaurav Khatri, Mohit Goyat, Pankaj Mohite and Aslam Inamdar led the charge for the Puneri Paltan, who finished the first half very strongly. At the midway stage of the contest, Puneri Paltan led the contest 19-13.

The second half started at a slightly slower pace with both sides being watchful in the opening exchanges. However, the Puneri Paltan still led by 6 points, and as the first half progressed, they ensured the Haryana Steelers would not cause them too much trouble.

In the final phase of the contest, Mohammadreza Shadloui looked to up the ante for the Haryana Steelers, but the Puneri Paltan were in fine form and thwarted any chances of a comeback.

With less than three minutes to go, Aslam Inamdar inflicted an All Out which helped the Puneri Paltan further strengthen their stranglehold on the contest. The Puneri Paltan eventually won the contest at a canter.

Earlier in the day, the Tamil Thalaivas commenced their PKL Season 11 campaign with a fantastic performance, as they swatted away the challenge of the Telugu Titans with relative ease on Saturday.

Pawan Sehrawat kicked off proceedings for the Telugu Titans with a Super Raid in the very first minute. Shortly after, the Telugu Titans captain picked up three more raid points to give his side a healthy lead. However, a little later, Tamil Thalaivas’ Sachin inflicted an ALL OUT as they surged ahead and took the lead on the Telugu Titans.