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Season 5 of the Pro Kabaddi League is nearing completion. With the Gujarat Fortunegiants already in the final, the battle was on between Patna Pirates and Bengal Warriors to seal that final spot. In the end, it was the 2-time defending champions Patna who set up a date with Gujarat in the final. But the match was a close one with the scores are 47-44. We look at the 5 talking points from the 2nd qualifier match.
5. Bengal on the Backfoot
Bengal came into this match on the back of a heavy loss against the Gujarat Fortunegiants. Their rivals, Patna Pirates had won their last two eliminators against the Haryana Steelers and the Puneri Paltan. Tonight’s game was a do or die for both the teams.
The head-to-head between the two teams was narrowly in favour of the Bengal Warriors. Their two matches ended in a tie and the sole win for the Warriors was by a narrow margin of two points. Meanwhile, after facing a huge defeat against Gujarat, Bengal will be eyeing to bounce back in this match and book their berth in final.
4. Maninder Singh vs Pardeep Narwal
This was a showdown between Bengal's Maninder Singh and Patna's Pardeep Narwal. The two have been the outstanding players for their side so it would have been interesting to see how they squared off. Although it was a close battle, Narwal came out on top with 36 attempted raids and 23 points. Singh on the other hand managed 21 raids and came out with 17 points. 12 of Singh's raids were successful while Narwal had 19 successful raids. Obviously, Narwal's contribution proved to be more fruitful as Patna squeaked through to the final.
3. Bengal Not Throwing in the Towel
By half-time, the Pirates had built up a 9-point lead and the Warriors went back to the drawing board. Soon, the Pirates raced to a 31-21 score and it seemed to be gift-wrapped for the defending champions. Then Bengal changed their tactics and somehow kept themselves alive in the match to see the score at 46-43. By targeting certain players, inflicting well-timed All-Outs and bagging bonus points, they let Patna know that if they were going down, they were going down fighting. Soon it was the Bengal aggression vs Patna strategy, ultimately, Patna held on for the win.
2. Patna Get the Monkey Off Their Backs
The two teams have clashed 3 times during the tournament already and the defending champions had never defeated Bengal before. They previously had 2 draws and a loss to the Warriors. But they could take comfort in the fact that their only loss was by a slender margin. But when they finally won, they made sure that the win counted. Pardeep Narwal lead fro the front and made sure Patna established why they were 2-time PKL champions. Patna have been in sublime form and they will hope to carry it forward into Saturday's final against Gujarat.
1. Gujarat vs Patna: Final Countdown
With star raider Pardeep Narwal on song, Saturday's clash will be a big test for both teams. Gujarat are said to be one of the best defensive sides in PKL, while the Pirates are one of the best attacking sides. Narwal was the initiator of all the three All-Outs on the Warriors and ended the night with another resplendent feather added to his already heavy crown by becoming only the second player after Rahul Chaudhari to cross the 600-raid-point mark in VIVO Pro Kabaddi. So will the Fortunegiants stand tall or will the Pirates plunder for the 3rd time? Stay tuned on Saturday to find out.
