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With the playoffs fast approaching, Pro Kabaddi 2019 is in full swing as the teams are putting their best foot forward in order to finish in the top 6 by the end of the league stage. While the top two teams will directly qualify for the semifinals, the remaining four teams in the top 6 will participate in the eliminators to decide the other two semifinalists.
The Pune leg started with the hosts Puneri Paltan taking on Gujarat Fortunegiants at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex. The home team picked up a victory in this game but disappointed the fans in the next encounter, as Anup Kumar's men lost 33-55 to the resurgent Patna Pirates.
In the next game, they were not convincing as the Tamil Thalaivas held them to a draw in the final moments of the game. However, on the final day, guided by Pankaj Mohite's heroics, the Puneri Paltan defeated the defending champions Bengaluru Bulls and ended their home leg on a high.
As we build up to the business stages, the raiders will have a crucial role to play in the upcoming weeks as teams will look to win all their games in the path to the playoffs. On that note, here are the five players with most raid points at the end of Pune leg.
#5 Siddharth Sirish Desai
Although the Telugu Titans were not able to notch up a victory in the Pune leg, Siddharth Desai finished with 24 points from two encounters. While he managed 12 points from 18 raids against table-toppers Dabang Delhi in the first game, he amassed the same number of points from 15 raids against the Patna Pirates in the second encounter.
Considering that he is playing in a team that does not boast of a settled second raider, expectations from Siddharth are high and if Telugu Titans are to fancy themselves of a spot in the playoffs, the former U-Mumba man's consistency will have to be better on the mat.
#4 Maninder Singh
After an impressive show in their home leg, the Bengal Warriors played just one game in Pune. They faced off against the Haryana Steelers, and riding on their captain Maninder Singh's impressive show, the Warriors picked up a 12-point victory.
Maninder Singh picked up 18 points in that game and took his tally to 156 raid points from the season, at an average of 9.17 points per game.
#3 Naveen Kumar
For a man who has been in scintillating form and has been picking up Super 10s as a mere formality, Naveen Kumar picked up 12 points against the Gujarat Fortune Giants and the Telugu Titans which took his tally to 197 raid points from 16 games.
Naveen has been picking raid points at an average of 12.31 per game and with a successful raid percentage of 61.37, the youngster is sure to topple many records in the coming weeks.
#2 Pardeep Narwal
It has been an eventful last two weeks for the Patna Pirates. After a string of losses, the three-time champions are finally producing match-winning performances and more often than not, it has been their captain Pardeep Narwal who has been the driving factor.
At the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Pune too, Pardeep was at his best as he picked up 18 points and 17 points against Puneri Paltan and Telugu Titans respectively, helping his side win the first game and holding Telugu Titans to a draw in the second one.
#1 Pawan Sehrawat
Although Pawan Sehrawat might not have had the intended impact on the only game he played in Pune, his 12-point effort against the hosts on the final day of the leg helped the Bengaluru Bulls grab a point despite trailing by more than seven points during the majority of the game.
Pawan currently holds the top spot on this list and with Pardeep Narwal close on his heels, the season six MVP must do better in the upcoming games, both to improve his stats and also help his side cement a playoff spot.
