Bengaluru Bulls suffered a 24-33 loss vs Patna Pirates in the first match at the Kanteerava Stadium. The match started on a sour note for Bengaluru Bulls as Surjeet Narwal and Amit Rathi were unsuccessful in their raids as the Pirates took an early 2-0 lead.
The Bulls roared back through Rathi as they managed to equalise the score at 4-a-piece by the 5th minute. Patna managed to pull apart by 3 points, but depite their best efforts, the Bulls managed to equalise once again as they made it 7-7 after 11 minutes. The visitors reduced the home team to 2 men when Rohit Kumar came back to his half with 2 touch points in the 15th minute.
The all out was inflicted in the very next minute by Manpreet Singh as the home crowd was left shell-shocked by the scoreline as the visitors led by 8 points. By the end of the half, the lead had increased to 10 points as Randhir Singh prepared himself for a tough half-time talk.
HT: Bengaluru Bulls 10-20 Patna Pirates
Both teams exchanged blows for the first 5 minutes of the second half. With the score at 13-22 in favour of the Pirates, former Bulls’ player Rajesh Mondal won a couple of points for his team. For the Bulls, Pawan Kumar made it a 9-point game by winning 2 points in the resulting raid and Amit Rathi reduced the deficit further as the home team gave the home crowd something to cheer about.
With 5 minutes to go in the match, Surjeet Narwal’s team trailed by 8 points as they set up a tense finale. However, the Pirates, through brilliant raiding by Mondal, ensured the home team didn’t get any closer as they sealed out a 9-point win.
FT: Bengaluru Bulls 24-33 Patna Pirates
