Patna Pirates Vs Tamil Thalaivas 16 January 2024

Full-Time
Patna Pirates 25 - 41 Tamil Thalaivas

Raid Points: Pirates (17) - Thalaivas (16)
Tackle Points: Pirates (8) - Thalaivas (21)

That's the story of the match! This is easily the best defensive performance in the league, and it was the right cover defender M Abishek who started it all for the Thalaivas. He finished with 7 tackle points to his name, with Sahil Gulia in the left corner also getting a High 5. The rest of the defense also contributed handsomely in defense as the Thalaivas played aggressively, but not recklessly.

In the raiding department, Ajinkya Pawar came clutch in the final ten minutes to get to his Super 10, helping them avoid a potential all-out and a late collapse. 

As for the Pirates, their defense let them down as Ankit waged a lone battle in the left corner and received very little support, with Krishan Dhull having a nightmare of a match, with seven unsuccessful tackles and only one tackle point. Their raiders were largely kept quiet, and while Sudhakar did have a brief period of resurgence in the 2nd half, it was nowhere near enough for them to make a comeback.

The Thalaivas leapfrog the Yoddhas to move up to 10th after that win while the Pirates remain in 8th place.

While it certainly wasn't a close game by any means, it's not everyday you get to witness a defensive masterclass like the one the Thalaivas just put on! The PKL will be back tomorrow with a double-header to close out the Jaipur leg, and it's sure to be an exciting set of matches! This is Shreyas signing off for tonight! Good Night!

2nd Half, 40'
Patna Pirates 25 - 41 Tamil Thalaivas

And rather fittingly, the match ends with a solid tackle from the Tamil Thalaivas, who have destroyed the Patna Pirates here! Abishek gets his 7th tackle point of the night with another block-dash on Manjeet.

With the whistle about to blow, captain Neeraj Kumar decides to have a go in the final raid of the match, and Sahil Gulia executes an audacious ankle hold close to the mid-line, dragging the opposition captain back, to get to his High 5.

2nd Half, 39'
Patna Pirates 25 - 39 Tamil Thalaivas

Manjeet scores a useful point for the Pirates, but at the other end, Ajinkya Pawar continues his unstoppable run, and he has absolutely terrorized Krishan Dhull in the Patna right corner.

It's a do-or-die raid for Ajinkya, and he gets a simple hand touch on Krishan, and that point gets him his Super 10. On a night where the defenses have been on top, this has been some effort from him.

2nd Half, 38'
Patna Pirates 23 - 38 Tamil Thalaivas

Sachin Tanwar is tackled by an onrushing Sagar from the right corner, who gets to four tackle points for the night. The Thalaivas' lead increases to 15, and this has been some defensive effort from them!

Timeout called by Patna, but it's hard to see how they make a comeback from this position.

2nd Half, 37'
Patna Pirates 23 - 37 Tamil Thalaivas

It's basically been Ajinkya Pawar vs the Patna raiders in the last five minutes, and he has single-handedly delayed the all-out for nearly four minutes, and the frustration gets to the Thalaivas.

Sudhakar M has been really good in the last two minutes, but the raiding fatigue gets to him as he's brought down by a three-man Thalaivas' defense, and that should be the final nail in the coffin.

2nd Half, 35'
Patna Pirates 22 - 34 Tamil Thalaivas

All of a sudden, the defenses of both teams have been very quiet, and it's the raiders doing all the talking. Ajinkya Pawar doing all the heavy lifting for the Thalaivas to keep them in the game, but at the other end, they are leaking points, with Sachin Tanwar expertly navigating his way through to the mid-line with a 2-point raid.

With five minutes left to play, the Thalaivas are down to three men on the mat, and Patna could take something away from this match.

2nd Half, 33'
Patna Pirates 19 - 32 Tamil Thalaivas

Trouble brewing here for the Thalaivas as Sudhakar picks up two quick points immediately after the timeout, as they look a tad tentative in defense. The Thalaivas then have a do-or-die raid of their own, but they have Ajinkya Pawar to bail them out with a touch on Neeraj Kumar.

2nd Half, 30'
Patna Pirates 17 - 31 Tamil Thalaivas

A flurry of points for the Pirates as the timeout approaches, and they may have a shot at picking up a point from this game! Neeraj Kumar strikes in another Super Tackle situation to tackle Vishal Chahal, post which Sudhakar squirms through an attempted challenge from the left chain to escape with a point.

14 points the deficit, with ten minutes left to play. Can the Pirates mount a comeback?

2nd Half, 29'
Patna Pirates 14 - 30 Tamil Thalaivas

Finally, something to cheer for the Pirates! Ankit with a solid ankle hold to stop Narender in a Super Tackle situation reduces the deficit to 16. That also brings about Ankit's High 5, but it has been him alone in defense, and he has lacked the necessary support.

2nd Half, 27'
Patna Pirates 12 - 30 Tamil Thalaivas

At the other end, the Pirates' raiding troubles continue as Manjeet is tackled by Sagar, with support arriving in time. They then follow it up as Mohit races across from the left-in position to catch Sachin off-guard and dash him off-court. 15th tackle point for the Thalaivas!

2nd Half, 25'
Patna Pirates 12 - 28 Tamil Thalaivas

The Thalaivas have absolutely come out flying in this 2nd half, and the Pirates are yet to score a single point in this half, while the Thalaivas have scored 8. Both Sachin and Sudhakar are brought down by the Thalaivas' defense, with Himanshu claiming both the tackle points.

Ajinkya Pawar is tackled in a 1v4 situation, and that's the first point for the Pirates in this half!

2nd Half, 23'
Patna Pirates 11 - 25 Tamil Thalaivas

The Thalaivas will raid first in this 2nd half, and the Pirates once again play the risky strategy of forcing the do-or-die raid. If they get it right, it's a Super Tackle, but if they make rookie errors like the one Rohit makes, they're always going to struggle!

The Pirates now have a Do-or-die raid, and it's the defender Neeraj Kumar who has to go in to raid, and Abishek comes around with a solid block on the opponent right cover to get his 6th tackle point of the night.

The all-out comes about immediately after as Ajinkya Pawar puts in the surrender raid. Great start to the 2nd half from the Thalaivas who have a 14-point lead now.

Half-Time
Patna Pirates 11 - 20 Tamil Thalaivas

Both teams' raiding units have pretty much been on par, with the Pirates' raiding trio scoring as many points as Narender and Ajinkya Pawar. However, it's the Thalaivas' defense which has looked really tough to breach, and it's M Abishek in the right cover who has led their charge, picking up a High 5 in the first half itself!

All three Patna raiders have found it hard to score points in successive raids, and that's something they need to figure out at half-time. A 9-point deficit isn't the worst that they have faced this season, and the Thalaivas need to be wary of a comeback as there's a lot of kabaddi yet to be played. The 2nd half coming right up!

1st Half, 20'
Patna Pirates 11 - 20 Tamil Thalaivas

This is some defensive performance from the Tamil Thalaivas! Sahil Gulia with a monstrous block on Sudhakar M, and that's their 10th tackle point of the night!

Ajinkya Pawar further sweetens things up heading into half-time by expertly escaping away with a point in a do-or-die raid against four defenders. The challenge comes in from Ankit, but Ajinkya jumps over him to get through to the mid-line.

A 9-point deficit for the Pirates at half-time and they need to figure out how to unlock the Thalaivas' defense.

1st Half, 18'
Patna Pirates 11 - 18 Tamil Thalaivas

Narender can't do much against Ankit's ankle hold in a do-or-die raid, but at the other end, M Abishek is absolutely flying. He brings down the do-or-die raid expert Sachin Tanwar with a really well-timed diving ankle hold to reach five tackle points in only 18 minutes.

1st Half, 16'
Patna Pirates 10 - 17 Tamil Thalaivas

Manjeet is practically gifted a point by an indecisive Sagar in the right corner, and Ajinkya Pawar is brought down by a chain tackle. However, just as they were stringing a couple of points together, the Thalaivas' defense comes up trumps, with M Abishek getting his 4th tackle point of the night with another well-timed dash on Manjeet.

1st Half, 14'
Patna Pirates 8 - 16 Tamil Thalaivas

Ajinkya Pawar fancies a challenge from the right-in position, but it's an easy one for Sachin to evade. Narender quickly revives him with an easy touch point on Krishan Dhull, and the Thalaivas' defense ensure that Sachin doesn't get away in the following raid.

7 tackle points for the Thalaivas, but only one for the Pirates, and that's been the difference so far!

1st Half, 12'
Patna Pirates 7 - 14 Tamil Thalaivas

Sudhakar sizzles with a quick running hand touch on the left cover to get the Pirates going once again, but Ajinkya Pawar hits back by drawing the error from Neeraj Kumar, with an advanced ankle hold attempt close to the mid-line.

Sudhakar doesn't get another successful raid as Sagar pounces with an assured ankle hold in the right corner. With that, he gets to 200 tackle points in his PKL career. Quite an achievement that!

1st Half, 10'
Patna Pirates 6 - 12 Tamil Thalaivas

The Pirates are comfortable with 3 defenders on the mat and force the do-or-die raid for the Thalaivas, and it's Narender who volunteers for the occasion, and he succeeds with aplomb.

Manish Dhull with the error gifts a point away, but Neeraj Kumar then has an absolute brain fade and concedes a silly point. Narender doesn't cross the mid-line, but Neeraj doesn't realize that and casually moves up the court only for the raider to quickly get a touch on the Pirates captain.

Sahil Gulia then makes sure that the Thalaivas get the early all-out and a 6-point lead heading into the first timeout!

1st Half, 7'
Patna Pirates 5 - 7 Tamil Thalaivas

Do-or-die raid for the Pirates in a 1v4 situation and with no Sachin Tanwar on the mat, it was always going to be difficult for Sudhakar M. Sahil Gulia comes around and puts in a solid block, and we're back level.

Ajinkya Pawar then delivers in the Thalaivas' do-or-die raid, escaping from Krishan Dhull's premature challenge. Manjeet is then stopped right in his tracks by Sagar, and once again, the Pirates are down to three, and the Thalaivas have a 2-point lead. A real roller-coaster of a game this.

1st Half, 4'
Patna Pirates 5 - 4 Tamil Thalaivas

Outstanding raid from Sudhakar M, and we're back on level terms! The left raider goes deep on the right, anticipates the cover coming across, and puts in a stellar dubki to escape to the mid-line.

They then pull ahead into the lead as Krishan Dhull executes the ankle hold to perfection on Narender in a do-or-die raid for the Thalaivas.

1st Half, 2'
Patna Pirates 2 - 4 Tamil Thalaivas

Sachin strikes instantly with the quickest of running hand touches on the left cover. However, Narender starts even better with a two point raid, swivelling around the attempted challenge from Ankit in the left corner, also getting the left cover in the process.

Manjeet then falls to a well-timed dash from Mohit, after which Abhishek delivers with a solid block on Sachin. The Pirates are down to three, and this is a strong start from the Thalaivas.

Toss Update: The Tamil Thalaivas win the toss and choose court. The Pirates will raid first.

Sachin Tanwar to put in the first raid, and we're all set to start.

It's the Tamil Thalaivas who make their way onto the mat first, followed by the Pirates.

Ensure you take the right captaincy decision to have that edge over your opponents on Dream11 by checking out our captaincy suggestions for this match:

With both these teams filled with a plethora of Dream11 options to choose from, selecting the right seven players while also balancing the budget is a tricky task. Take a look at Sportskeeda's Dream11 prediction for optimal suggestions regarding the same:

Check out how these two sides have fared whenever they've faced each other in the past:

Team News

Here are the lineups of both teams:

Patna Pirates: Neeraj Kumar (C), Sachin Tanwar, Ankit, Krishan Dhull, Manish Dhull, Sudhakar M, and Manjeet.

Tamil Thalaivas: Sagar (C), Sahil Gulia, Narender, Ajinkya Pawar, Mohit, M Abishek, and Himanshu.

The Pirates remain unchanged while the Thalaivas make a single change to their starting lineup from their previous match, with Himanshu returning to re-take his spot from Sathish Kannan.

Preview

Hello and welcome to Sportskeeda's coverage of PKL Season 10. We have only one match for you today on Tuesday, January 16, but it is sure to be an exciting and enthralling contest between two sides who need the win badly. It's the 8th-placed Patna Pirates who take on the 11th-placed Tamil Thalaivas on the penultimate day of the Jaipur leg at the SMS Indoor Stadium.

Form-wise, things haven't gone the Pirates' way at all, and after losing a game from a certain winning position against the Bengaluru Bulls, they were staring down the barrel of another defeat when a sudden comeback saw them tie the match against Dabang Delhi KC. Some draws are wins, and their last game certainly was one for Patna, and they'll want to take that momentum into this game.

Meanwhile, the Thalaivas were pretty confident heading into their clash against the Haryana Steelers after decimating the UP Yoddhas, but came up short in the end, with their raiding department unable to satisfactorily breach the Steelers' defense, despite Sagar's best efforts in their own defending unit.

Both these teams have had plenty of close finishes this season, and when both of them want the win so badly, how could this one not be a nail-biter? So sit back and relax as I, Shreyas, bring you all the action as it unfolds in what should be a humdinger of a contest!