The Jaipur Pink Panthers will take on the Patna Pirates, in Match 46 of Pro Kabaddi League Season 4, at the DOME@NSCI SVP Stadium, Mumbai. The top of the table clash promises to be a thriller, as a win for either team would almost seal a place in the top 4.
Season 1 champions, Jaipur Pink Panthers are currently top in the table, with 7 wins and only 4 defeats. Defending champs, Patna Pirates are second in the table, with 2 games in hand over the table-toppers.
Jaipur Pink Panthers performance so far
Jaipur Pink Panthers sealed a win in a thrilling encounter against Dabang Delhi, which ended 24-22. Standout performances by Jasvir Singh and Anup Kumar played a huge role in Jaipur’s triumph. Delhi started off the game by sending Jasvir Singh and Shabeer Bapu to the bench inside the first two minutes. Jaipur recovered from the early disappointment, as they led half-time at 14-11.
Delhi’s Meraj Sheykh burst into life in the second half as he took on raiding responsibilities to earn Delhi vital points. Selvamani and Sheykh were the best performers for Delhi and put the former champs under a lot of pressure. However, Pink Panthers defence held tight, and Pink Panthers registered another win to consolidate at the top.
Yasvir Singh has been Jaipur’s best player this season with 59 raid points. He has been instrumental in Pink Pathers’ impressive showing at Pro Kabaddi League Season 4. It’s been all good so far, but the job’s still not done for the Panthers, and Singh will look to continue his good performances in the lag-end of the group stage.
Rajesh Narwal, too, has been brilliant this season, with 51 raid points and 16 tackle points. His all-round abilities have troubled oppositions, especially in a match against Dabang Delhi, where he scored a whopping 16 points.
Ajay Kumar will be very high on confidence after his brilliant showing last night played a vital part in Jaipur’s win. Kumar has 47 raid points and has burst into life in the second half of Season 4. The ever-improving raider, along with the duo of Jasvir Singh and Rajesh Narwal, makes the Panthers’ attack one of best of Season 4.
Patna Pirates performance so far
Patna Pirates won their last match against the Bengal Warriors in a close match, 33-27. Bengal are 7th in the table, but it was not going to be an easy task to defeat the home side. Bengal was off to a good start, thanks to impressive performances by Jang-Kun Lee and Monu Goyat. Bengal defence stood solid and held on to a 12-10 lead at half-time.
Surjeet Singh’s face-off with Patna man, Fazel Atrachali, was fascinating to watch. Singh got the better of Fazel early on, but the Iranian produced a beast of a tackle to settle the mini-battle. Pardeep Narwal started off slow but burst into life with two back-to-back four-point raids, and single-handedly, won the match for Patna Pirates. The win puts the Pirates in a solid position to seal a semi-final spot.
19-year old Pardeep Narwal continues to be Patna’s most valuable raider this season and has managed to live up to the high standard he’s set for himself. Narwal is poised to be the next big thing in the world of Kabaddi. He’s the second-best raider thus far, with 77 raid points. His form has been critical to Pirates’ success.
Rajesh Mondal hasn’t lived up to expectations, but will look to change that after today’s match. It is important to Pirates for their man to get back in form before the knockout stage gets underway.
The defensive trio of Dharmaraj Cheralathan, Fazel Atrachali, and Bajirao Hodage will have a very crucial role to play in today’s match against one of the best-attacking units.
Match prediction
The top-of-the-table clash promises to be one of the best matches of Season 4, as two in-form teams face off. Both the teams have a solid squad, with standout performers at every position on the mat.
The match contains superstars who can win the match single-handedly – Pardeep Narwal, Jasvir Singh, and Rajesh Narwal, among others.
The Pirates defence has been solid throughout Season 4, and it will be interesting to see the trio of Cheralathan, Atrachali, and Hodage, face off against Jasvir and Co. The Pirates have been outstanding, and will hold the edge over Jaipur in today’s match.
Squads
Jaipur Pink Panthers
Raiders: Jasvir Singh (Captain), Shabeer Bapu, Ajay Kumar, Lo Chia Wei, Mahipal Narwal, Tushar Patil, Amit Nagar.
Defenders: Amit Hooda, Rohit Rana, Parveen Narwal, Jawahar.
All-Rounders: Ran Singh, Rajesh Narwal, Shrikant Tewthia, Kazuhiro Takano, Parvesh Bhainswal, Tae Deok Eom
Patna Pirates
Defenders: Dharmraj Cheralathan, Bajirao Hodage, Deepak Dhull, Vijin Thangadurai, Fazel Atrachali, Abolfazel Maghsodlo, Sunny, Sunil Kumar
All-rounders: Sanjay Kumar, Hadi Oshtorak, Kuldeep Singh
Raider: Mahesh Goud, Pardeep Narwal, Rajesh Mondal, Vinoth Paulyas
Jaipur Pink Panthers vs Patna Pirates Live Match Information
Date: 22/07/2016
Time: 20:00 IST
Venue: DOME@NSCI SVP Stadium, Mumbai.
TV Channels: Star Sports 2/Star Sports 2 HD (English), Star Sports 3/Star Sports 3 HD (Hindi)
Live stream: StarSports.com
