Puneri Paltan lose to Patna Pirates

Pune, September 15, 2019: Puneri Paltan lost to Patna Pirates 55-33 in a VIVO Pro Kabaddi League match at Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex, Mahalunge, Balewadi, Pune, on Sunday. Puneri Paltan put in a spirited performance but lost to Patna. Pardeep Narwal scored Super 10 (18 raid points) as the Patna Pirates overcame a stiff challenge from Anup Kumar-coached Puneri Paltan to secure their third win. The first half of the match was highly entertaining with both teams throwing caution to the wind in a raid fest. Pune’s young raider Pankaj Mohite was the first to impress with a three-point Super Raid in the fourth minute. But Pardeep Narwal was in no mood to let Pune’s raiders steal the limelight. The Patna raider took control of the proceeding as he targeted the Paltan one by one, ably supported in his defence by rejuvenated Neeraj Kumar. The Pirates’ recent run of form (three consecutive wins) have also been largely to the presence of Korean raider Jang Kun Lee who has chipped in with valuable points as a secondary raider when Pardeep is sent to the dugout. They worked in tandem and clinched they first All-Out of the match in the 10th minute to open a five-point gap. Patna continued pressing as Pardeep raced to his Super 10 in the dying minutes of the half. His raids, combined with Neeraj Kumar’s tackling (who also secured his High 5 in the half) gave Patna another All-Out in the last minute of the first half to open a 10-point gap (27-17) going into the break. The second half proved to be the same for Puneri Paltan despite their efforts to mount a comeback. Pune struggled to reduce the points gap. Pardeep Narwal and Neeraj Kumar secured another All-Out in the 10th minute of the match. The Pirates continued their domination till the final stages of the match with Neeraj Kumar reaching double figures for tackle points. Puneri Paltan is now at the 10th spot in the points table. Today’s Match Awards: • VIVO PERFECT RAIDER OF THE MATCH o ROHIT GULIA (JERSEY NO. 7) – GUJARAT FORTUNEGIANTS o PARDEEP NARWAL (JERSEY NO. 9) – PATNA PIRATES • TATA MOTORS ACE DEFENDER OF THE MATCH o VISHAL MANE (JERSEY NO. 12) – DABANG DELHI K.C. o NEERAJ (JERSEY NO. 5) – PATNA PIRATES • DREAM11 GAME CHANGER OF THE MATCH o NAVEEN KUMAR (JERSEY NO. 10) – DABANG DELHI K.C. o NEERAJ (JERSEY NO. 5) – PATNA PIRATES • MOMENT OF THE MATCH o NAVEEN KUMAR (JERSEY NO. 10) – DABANG DELHI K.C. o PARDEEP NARWAL (JERSEY NO. 9) – PATNA PIRATES