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Murthal Magnets underlined their dominance in the inaugural JSG Women's Yuva Kabaddi Series 2024 with a 28-21 victory over Himalayan Tahrs in a thrilling final at the Sawai Mansingh Indoor Stadium here to finish the tournament with an all-win record.
Raider Nikita, 15, emerged as the top scorer for Murthal Magnets with an impressive nine points, including two bonus points. Kavita and Dipti also made significant contributions, each adding 5 points to the team's tally. Dipti, who missed the survival round due to her participation in the Khelo India University games, proved to be a game-changer in the summit round as her performance played a crucial role in securing the victory for Murthal Magnets, a release said. Asian Games gold medalist Pushpa Rana stood out as the star performer for the Himalayan Tahrs, scoring seven touch points and one bonus point. Nikita, who had helped Haryana win the gold medal at the 2023 Sub-Junior Nationals in Jharkhand, has been the find of the tournament as she played an instrumental role in helping Murthal Magnets win all their round-robin matches comfortably, the release said. The inaugural JSG Women's Yuva Kabaddi Series 2024, a platform for aspiring players to showcase their skills, witnessed a total of 19 high-intensity matches with 96 players from six different states, including Rajasthan, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, and Delhi, competing over a week, first in a round-robin league called Survival round and then the play-offs, Summit Round. All the teams had a blend of international stars like Asian Games gold medalist Pushpa Rana, Nidhi Sharma and Jyoti Kumar, and the young brigade that included defenders C Sneka and Bhavna Devi, who had a memorable National Games in Goa among others. Nikita finished the tournament with 69 points, while Pushpa Rana completed a century to score a total of 104 points to top the Raiders chart. Champa Thakur of the Himalayan Tahrs was the top defender with 22 points, while Sneha of the Palani Tuskers was a close second with 21 points. "The quality of matches in the group stage of the JSG Women's Yuva Kabaddi Series 2024 has only vindicated our decision to launch the women's series and underlined the kind of talent we have in the country. Many future stars have emerged during this week-long event and I am sure that many of them will soon be pushing for spots in the national team," said CEO of Yuva Kabaddi Series, Vikas Gautam. The tournament has a total prize pool of Rs 12.5 lakh, with Murthal Magnets taking home a prize purse of Rs 5 lakh. Himalayan Tahrs will get a prize purse of Rs 2.50 lakh. (ANI)
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