Three tackle points in the final minute of the game saw Patna Pirates beat the Haryana Steelers 30-27 in the final league match of Pro Kabaddi season 8, a result that saw Puneri Paltan benefit and secure the final spot in playoffs.

Playoff schedule via Pro Kabaddi website

Mohit Goyat and Aslam Inamdar once again showed why they are regarded amongst the best young talent in Kabaddi by helping Puneri Paltan beat Jaipur Pink Panthers 37-30 in match 130 of Pro Kabaddi. Mohit Goyat (14 points) and Aslam Inamdar (11 points) ensured Jaipur had no opportunity to make a comeback despite Arjun Deshwal’s best efforts. The Panthers’ raider scored 18 points but found very little support from his teammates.

Both teams entered the mat with a possibility of securing a playoff spot – Jaipur needed a win while Pune needed a victory with a points difference of 28+. In the end, Paltan had done enough to go through. The biggest winner from that result was in fact Bengaluru Bulls who secured a place right away in the eliminators.

A collective performance then helped Gujarat Giants beat U Mumba 36-33 in match 131. The victory on the final day of the league stages helped the Giants seal a place in the playoffs and in the process knock out Jaipur Pink Panthers. Raider Rakesh S was the star for two-time finalists Gujarat. He scored a Super 10 (13 points) and ensured the Giants had an early lead in the match. The experienced defence then guarded the team to secure an important victory.

U Mumba ended their hot-and-cold campaign with a defeat and will probably need to add more firepower to the squad in the summer. Their raider Ajith Kumar did however pick up a Super 10 (11 points) in the match.

In the third match of the day, Patna Pirates took on Haryana Steelers with the former defeating the latter 30-27. While Ashish held the forte for Steelers, it was the defence of Mohammadreza Shadloui and Shubham Shinde that ensure a top of the table finish for the Pirates. Steelers’ campaign came to an end with that defeat. Rising allrounder Ashish Narwal and defender Jaideep were the star performers for Haryana Steelers as they continued to put on a brave fight till the final whistle in the match. But Patna Pirates’ defence managed to catch Vikash Kandola and Ashish Narwal in the final minute and turned the match in their favour.

Pune’s lead was 11 points with 5 minutes remaining but Jaipur could smell the possibility of an all out. The Panthers inflicted that with 3 minutes remaining to slash Paltan’s lead to just 5 points. The season one champions could confirm a playoff spot with a win but Pune had other ideas. Mohit Goyat produced a stunning tackle on Arjun Deshwal to send him to the bench and Aslam followed it with a successful raid by touching Sandeep Dhull. That helped Pune open a lead and win with a margin of 7 points.

Final group phase standings

Position Team Played Won Lost Tie Points
1 Patna Pirates 22 16 5 1 86
2 Dabang Delhi 22 12 6 4 75
3 UP Yoddha 22 10 9 3 68
4 Gujarat Giants 22 10 8 4 67
5 Bengaluru Bulls 22 11 9 2 66
6 Puneri Paltan 22 12 9 1 66
7 Haryana Steelers 22 10 9 3 64
8 Jaipur Pink Panthers 22 10 10 2 63
9 Bengal Warriors 22 9 10 3 57
10 U Mumba 22 7 10 5 55
11 Tamil Thalaivas 22 5 11 6 47
12 Telugu Titans 22 1 17 4 27
Points system - Win: 5pts | Tie: 3pts | Loss by 7 or less points: 1pt | Loss by more than 7 points: 0 pts