Kathmandu Mavericks made a winning start in the Nepal Kabaddi League (NKL) with a thrilling victory over Pokhara Lakers.

The opening match of the tournament took place on Friday at the Dasarath Stadium in Tripureshwar, where Kathmandu triumphed 42-41.

From the beginning of the match, Kathmandu took an early lead. However, Pokhara made a strong comeback, narrowing the gap to 6-8. Despite this, Kathmandu’s captain, Ghanshyam Rokkamagar, made a crucial super tackle, giving Kathmandu a doubled advantage over Pokhara. Pokhara was out twice before the 10th minute, and by halftime, Kathmandu had built a significant lead of 14-25.

In the second half, Pokhara mounted a comeback. With just 6 minutes remaining, Pokhara narrowed the score to 32-36. During this period, Pokhara managed to halt Kathmandu’s captain Ghanshyam, but Pokhara’s Rohan Shrestha struck back with a powerful raid, knocking out three players and leveling the score at 36-36. Pokhara then applied constant pressure, pulling ahead 40-38. However, Ghanshyam used his experience on the court, scoring three crucial points in the final two minutes to lead Kathmandu to a dramatic comeback.

With this victory, Kathmandu secured five points in the league.