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Deepak Niwas Hooda single-handedly changed the course of the game as the Puneri Paltan crushed the Tamil Thalaivas 33-20 in Friday's first Pro Kabaddi League encounter.
The Patna Pirates and Gujarat Fortunegiants played out a thrilling match in the second match. Two sides perched at the top of their respective points table, neither of them were in the mood to let go easily.
Here are the five major talking points from tonight.
#1 Referee under the spotlight once again
Throughout Season 5, multiple raiders have voiced their opinion on the sub-standard refereeing that continues to plague the league. Friday was no different. In what was an extremely exciting first half between Tamil Thalaivas and Puneri Paltan, the referee made a blunder midway through it.
Rajesh Mondal stepped up for a do-or-die raid and had the opportunity to inflict an all out on the home side, who had only two players on the mat. He successfully touched one of them. But just as he was about to scurry across to his half, one of the Thalaivas' players held on to his jersey.
As a result, he was tackled. Sandeep Narwal's desperate plea for a T.V referral went in vain as the referee decided to award a super tackle to the Thalaivas instead.
#2 Impatient Pune made it tough for themselves
What has been a firmly established fact in Season 5 seemed like a myth on Friday. Puneri Paltan are a side known to be miserly in defense and a major part of their success this season can be attributed to their defenders grinding it out.
However, against the Thalaivas, Pune were extremely impatient at the back. On multiple occasions, they dived in for unnecessary tackles and gifted their opponents cheap points. Impatience plagued every single Pune player.
All of them seemed hungry but had their priorities were in the wrong place. The Thalaivas raiders found it extremely easy in the first half as they kept chipping away. Pune though ultimately turned it around in the second half.
#3 Deepak Niwas Hooda executes raid of the season?
With the game evenly poised and nine minutes left on the clock, Deepak Hooda stepped up for a do-or-die raid. Three men stood in the opposition half and it was always going to be a herculean task.
What seemed inevitable turned into the magical within seconds. Pune's captain was all but tackled by the Thalaivas defenders. All three of them pounced on Hooda who somehow stood his ground before weaving his way back into his own half.
Deepak had no right to make it, the odds were stacked heavily against him. Unbelievably shrugged off all three defenders with sheer power. At the end of it all, he inflicted an all out, executing a monster 5-point raid.
#4 Pardeep Narwal vs the Iranians
Across Season 5, we've seen Patna's star man struggle to open his account and then suddenly burst into life. Against Gujarat Fortunegiants, Pardeep once again found it extremely tough to unlock the opposition defense.
He went without a single point for the first ten minutes of the match. Four raids and zero points before he stepped up for a do-or-die raid in his fifth. He successfully took out Mahendra Rajput and opened his account.
Gujarat's corner defenders, Fazel and Abozar gave him a hard time on the mat and the Iranian duo's duel with Pardeep was a sight to behold. With Narwal focus solely on the Iranians, Gujarat's secondary defenders stole the show with their expertly executed advanced tackles on Patna's captain.
All in all, this was by far, Pardeep's most challenging night of Season 5. He must go back to the drawing board to assess how he can improve.
#5 Gujarat emerge winners in battle of the elite
While there have been a few teams who have done well this season, Gujarat and Patna have dominated. Prior to tonight, Patna had 10 wins in 18 games, Gujarat had 9 in 16. Patna's score difference stood at a healthy 70 points, Patna were just a couple points behind at 68.
This was a contest between two well-drilled teams who are very much aware of their strengths and weaknesses. The match held a lot of promise and it did not fail us. Patna and Gujarat traded heavy blows regularly and it made for a mouth-watering affair. Neither side could inflict an all out in the first half.
The second was a nail-biter, Patna executed four super tackles on the trot to come back from the dead. They gave Gujarat a run for their money late on but the Fortunegiants held on for a memorable victory.
