Patna Pirates extended their unbeaten run at home as they shared points with the Bengaluru Bulls in a pulsating 28-28 tie in a 2023-24 Pro Kabaddi League match on Wednesday.
The Bulls had a fresh raiding lineup for the contest and Sushil made all the difference in the opening minutes. The youngster produced a magnificent super raid to put his team 5-1 ahead and reduce the opposition to just two men.
The home side, who were missing their captain Sachin Tanwar, recovered well to avoid the all out and fought back through Ankit in defence and raider Sandeep to draw level at 8-8.
Akshit turned up for the Bengaluru Bulls as he chipped away at the Patna Pirates’ defence and a superb chain tackle on Sandeep led to the all out in the 16th minute.
The side from Karnataka took a 14-10 lead and the opening half came to an end with a 2-point raid from Patna Pirates captain Manjeet.
Sandeep stepped up big time for the Patna Pirates in the second half as he starred with a series of spectacular raids, which included two multi-point raids.
One of those saw him escape Monu’s attempted ankle hold and then land a running hand touch on Parteek to bring up his first super ten of the season.
Ankit was also particularly good for the home team as he excelled with a high five as they took the lead at 26-25 with 5 minutes to go.
It all boiled down to the final few minutes as Sandeep and Ankit combined to give Patna Pirates a one-point lead at 29-28 with under two minutes left.
Patna Pirates had a couple of reviews go their way and looked set to pick up a win, but Bharat came off the bench for Bengaluru Bulls and landed a running hand touch on Krishan Dhull in the penultimate raid to tie the scores and wrap up a thrilling contest.
In the process, Patna Pirates became just the 2nd team to remain unbeaten in their home leg this season along with Jaipur Pink Panthers.
Pink Panthers reach play-offs
Later in the day, the Jaipur Pink Panthers beat Tamil Thalaivas 42-27. The win meant the Jaipur Pink Panthers have become the first team to qualify for the play-offs this season, with three legs of the league stage yet to be played.
As has been the norm this season, Arjun Deshwal starred for the Pink Panthers with a massive 13 points, while the Tamil Thalaivas' raider Narender picked up 12 in a losing effort.
In a first half defined mostly by extraordinary moments, Narender kicked things off with a super raid to take out Reza Mirbagheri, Ankush and Sunil Kumar to put the Thalaivas in control.
Not to be outdone, Arjun Deshwal responded in kind with a super raid of his own that reduced the Tamil Thalaivas numbers on the mat.
It took a pair of brilliant super tackles from the Thalaivas' debutant Mohammadreza Kaboudrahangi to keep his side in the contest and even hold a slender two-point lead as they went into the break.
The second half though was a different game altogether as the Jaipur Pink Panthers banded together and came to the fore to show their championship credentials.
Deshwal's constant menace had the Tamil Thalaivas scrambling and Pink Panthers inflicted the first all out of the game to take a 27-20 lead halfway through the second half.
A second all out with four minutes of the game left ended the contest as the Jaipur Pink Panthers took a massive 37-22 lead.
The inaugural champions’s misfiring defence which had logged a mere three points in the first half clicked brilliantly to come back with 11 in the second period, a huge reason for their resounding victory.