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Into the sixth leg of Pro Kabaddi Season 5, the caravan has reached the eastern part of the country. The curtain raiser of the Kolkata leg saw a clash between two teams from the East as the Bengal Warriors and Patna Pirates reignited their rivalry.
After that dramatic finish in the last game that helped the Warriors somehow salvage a tie, the Warriors this time effected another superb comeback and took the win to continue the superb run of form that they are currently on, winning 41-38 in a contest that went down to the wire.
#1 Warriors start on the backfoot
The Bengal Warriors got their home leg off in a disadvantaged position. Their best player from the last few games, Deepak Narwal, was ruled out due to injury. As a matter of fact, his sudden uptick in form began the last time these two sides played each other as he played a starring role in that spectacular come-from-behind tie that the Warriors snatched.
His absence looked to have thrown a spanner in the works for the Warriors who were looking to extend their 4-match unbeaten run. It was a setback that they were able to recover from though.
#2 Bhupi never lets you down
The Patna Pirates got off to a quick start in this one as they took a quick 7-2 lead. Down to one man and facing an All Out, Bhupender Singh crossed the mid-line to go into raid for the Warriors. He had been subbed in just minutes ago for lead raider Maninder Singh.
Bhupi is one of the smartest and calmest players in Pro Kabaddi and is very good in pressure situations. Not only did he stave off an All Out for the Warriors here, he managed to pick up a Bonus and a touch point to make it a 2-point raid to draw his side closer to 4-8.
He wasn't done there though. With the revival, the Warriors now had two men and on the Pirates' subsequent raid, Bhupi helped effect a Super Tackle on Monu Goyat to net his side another two points and bring the score closer to 6-8.
Just another instance of Bhupi magic from this very underrated performer.
#3 Down to one man, no problem!
This game had five instances where a team was reduced to one man and the court and yet the opposition failed to effect an All Out.
Bhupi started it by rescuing the Warriors as mentioned earlier to kickstart this trend. Buoyed by that, the Warriors went on to reduce the Pirates to one, but utility all-rounder Vinod Kumar, brought on specifically for that raid, helped Patna do the same. He netted the Bonus and a touch point just as Bhupi had. And that wasn't all.
Jang Kun Lee did likewise for the Warriors in the second and Vijay did it for the Pirates again right at the end with them facing a resurgent Warriors team.
It was a night when being last man standing wasn't as debilitating as normal.
#4 Patna must be sick of this Warriors team
The last time these two teams met, the Pirates left the mat with a look of anguish on their faces; a look that conveyed a massive opportunity lost. And rightfully so - they had given up a 14-point lead in the final 6 minutes of the game with callous errors that allowed the Warriors back in the game and enabled them to snatch a tie out of nowhere. Surely, they would set that right this time around?
Nope. Though not a collapse of epic proportions like their last encounter, the Pirates once again could not see out a lead. Having effected a second All Out on the Warriors they looked primed to avoid a repeat of the finish from the last time the two teams played.
Yet, it was the Warriors who finished with a flurry, riding on the back of a 15-4 run in the final five minutes to nab a superb 41-38 win to extend their unbeaten run to five matches - a tie and four wins.
The Warriors refused to throw in the towel at 25-34 down and as Maninder Singh got going, they began to chip away at the lead. A bout of silliness then struck the Pirates; on a Maninder pursuit after a Patna raid, Vinod Kumar decided to unnecessarily make a hasty tackle to gift a point. Pardeep Narwal on the next raid then decided to go for just a Bonus Point on the Pirates' next raid which happened to be a Do or Die raid. Upon review, it was shown that he had not quite managed it and that sent Patna's star man to the bench.
Sensing blood, the Warriors went in for the kill and despite Vijay's aversion of the All Out with his raid, the Warriors eventually got it done trapping Monu Goyat. With the scores tied, the Warriors refused to pull back and stayed aggressive and eventually pulled out the win.
#5 Maninder returns with a powerful performance as Warriors begin home leg with win
Deepak Narwal's absence was a big blow to the Warriors especially since Jang Kun Lee has struggled this season while Maninder was battling injury himself and a lack of form after a superb start.
Maninder though decided to turn it on tonight with his team really needing him. He picked up his effort brilliantly in the second half, being more decisive and quick and using his brute strength to good effect. No single tackle or dash could keep him down and he went on a tear late in the game.
He finished with 13 points from just 19 raids, displaying an amazing strike rate on his raids.
It bodes well for the Warriors as they need at least two raiders to fire if they are to sustain a title challenge.
