The group stage of Pro Kabaddi League 4 has drawn to a conclusion, with the last round of matches held today. In the first match of the day, Puneri Paltans will take on Bengaluru Bulls. Bulls have already been eliminated and are currently 6th in the table.
Puneri Paltans are 4th in the table with 37 points, tied with U Mumba’s tally this season. Both the teams from Maharashtra play their final group matches today, and whoever wins will go through to the semis. In case, both the teams win their respective matches, Pune will go through to the knockout stages, on grounds of a better differential scoring. Pune will play their match before U Mumba, and it’s up to the Paltans to set the stage on fire tonight.
Puneri Paltans performance so far
Puneri Paltans snatched an incredible 39-34 win against Dabang Delhi, to move to the top 4. Pune were boosted by the return of their lion-hearted skipper, Manjeet Chhillar, and his experience and leadership played a vital part in the outcome of the match. Ajay Thakur put in a decent performance, but Meraj Sheykh and Kashiling Adake were dominant and led the capital side to a 16-14 halftime lead.
Deepak Hooda was absolutely brilliant in the second half and caused Delhi’s All Out in the 28th minute of the game. Delhi tried to bring reinforcements in the form of Suresh Kumar, but Hooda was too hot to handle for the Delhi defence. Prashant Chavan was impressive for the Dabangs, but Pune prevailed to break into the top 4, with one day of group matches left.
Manjeet Chhillar will be absolutely crucial for the Puneri Paltans tonight. He’s missed a few games due to injury, but Pune will need every bit of his captaincy and experience in this high-stakes match. Chhillar will need to lead Pune from the front.
Deepak Niwas Hooda has been exceptional and is season 4’s 3rd best raider with 92 points. The Bulls are playing their last match of Season 4 tonight, and they’ll give it their all. Hooda will have to come up with another stellar performance to break a stubborn Bulls defence tonight.
Ajay Thakur might not have had as good a season as he would have expected, but there’s time for all that to change. Paltans need a hero today, and Thakur certainly fits the profile. With 57 raid points in Season 4, it remains to be seen whether Thakur can step up to the occasion.
Ravinder Pahal put up some good defensive performances this season, and along with Chhillar, will have an uphill task against Rohit Kumar and Co.
Bengaluru Bulls performance so far
Bengaluru Bulls did Pune a huge favour by winning a tight encounter against U Mumba in their last match. The match was evenly balanced as Rohit Kumar’s raids were negated by Mumbai’s Rishank Devadinga, and an intense battle between Anup Kumar and Surender Nada led to a 10-all scoreline at halftime.
Rohit Kumar was exceptional in the second half and was relentless with the hand touches. Kumar took almost all the raids for his team, and he didn’t disappoint, as he helped Bulls take a huge 12 point lead. Anup Kumar, too, joined the party and scored some impressive raid points. U Mumba clawed back its’ way into the game to tie the scores at 27-27. Rakesh Kumar, with a lot of pressure on his shoulders, delivered in the last do-or-die raid of the match to seal a thrilling 28-27 win for the Bulls.
Rohit Kumar has been Bulls’ best player this season and unless someone pulls off something spectacular today, he will end Season 4 as Banglore’s best player. Kumar has 92 raid points to his name, and will certainly hope to end Season 4 with a win for the Bulls.
The cornerstones of Bulls’ defence, Mohit Chhillar, and Surender Nada, will have to get their act together one last time this season, against a very impressive attack of Ajay Thakur and Deepak Niwas Hooda. Nada is the 2nd best defender this season, with 47 tackle points, and Chhillar has 30.
Match Prediction
Tonight’s match has all the qualities of a thriller, with Pune looking to win at any cost, and Bulls wouldn’t like to end Season 4 with a defeat. A win will guarantee a semis spot for the Paltans, but anything less than that can get them into a lot of trouble.
It will be exciting to see Rohit Kumar up against Chhillar and Pahal, and whoever comes out on top in this battle can determine today’s result.
Puneri Paltans have a lot riding on them tonight, and will hold the edge over a lacklustre Bengaluru Bulls.
Squads
Puneri PaltanDefenders: I Ketut Ariana, Gurpreet Singh, Somvir Shekhar, Ravinder Pahal, Joginder Narwal, Khomsan Thongkham, Virender ChhillarAll-rounders: Parmod Narwal, Preetam Chhillar, Manjeet Chhillar, Dalbir, Deepak Niwas HoodaRaider: Ajay Thakur, Sonu Narwal, Jay Bahadur Bohara, Anil Shriram Nimbolkar, Akshay Jadhav
Bengaluru BullsDefenders: Ashish Sangwan, Jeeva Gopal, Manoj Kumar, Mohit Chhillar, Surendar Nada, Rahul Kumar, Ravinder Kumar, Nicolas George MottramAll-rounder: Sanjay ShresthaRaider: Pawan Kumar, Sinotharan Kanesharajah, Pawan Kumar, Deepak Kumar Dahiya, Amit Rathi, Yogesh Hooda, Rohit Baliyan, Sumit Singh, Ajay Singh, Harish Naik
Puneri Paltans vs Bengaluru Bulls Live Match Information
Date: 27/07/2016Time: 20:00 ISTVenue: Thyagaraj Sports Complex, DelhiTV Channels: Star Sports 2/Star Sports 2 HD (English), Star Sports 3/Star Sports 3 HD (Hindi)Live stream: www.starsports.com
