Welcome to Sportstar's coverage of the Pro Kabaddi League. This is Nihit Sachdeva and I will be taking you through today's PKL 8 match between Bengaluru Bulls and Jaipur Pink Panthers.
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You can also check out our Kings of Kabaddi series from PKL 7 - a happier time pre-COVID when we got to physically sit down with some of the biggest names in the league and hear their stories. You can check out all episodes here:
Summary: Raiders Bharat and Pawan Sehrawat helped Bengaluru Bulls beat Jaipur Pink Panthers 45-37. Both, Bharat (15 points) and Pawan (10) scored Super 10s as the Bulls clinched an important victory in their fight for a Playoff spot. Jaipur dominated the early stages of the match, but a series of multi-point raids by Bharat helped Bengaluru stage a comeback. The eight-point margin of the loss means Jaipur didn’t get a single point in their Playoff race. Arjun Deshwal was the lone star for Jaipur with another Super 10 (16 points).
45-37: SUPER 10 FOR PAWAN SEHRAWAT!!! Final raid for Bulls, Jaipur needed to make sure that they did not give a point in this to walk away from this match with atleast one point. Howeve, Pawan's running hand touch on Vishal has denied Jaipur even that and this could be huge in the context of the play-off race.
44-35: Another multi-point raid for Bharat and this is probably it. It was a do-or-die raid for him, he was made to wait before Sandeep came for the tackle. He somehow managed to make it closer to the mid-line and despite Deepak Singh's block, he got his hand across the mid-line.
42-35: Deepak Hooda goes in for the raid, Bulls claim that he is self-out by walking into the lobbies without a touch. Deepak claims he has a touch off Dong Geon Lee and returns to his side of the mat. The decision goes in Jaipur's favour. Bengaluru has used its review as coach Randhir Sehrawat shouted from the bench that it was a self-out for Deepak. The replay clearly shows that Deepak did not step into the lobbies. Unsuccessful review for Bulls as Deepak got a touch on Dong Geon Lee's hair.
42-34: Jaideep gets Arjun again with a clutch ankle hold. Match is slipping away from Jaipur.
41-33: Dong Geon Lee has been subbed in and he proves the decision right with a touch point courtesy of a failed ankle hold by Pavan TR.
40-33: Deepak Hooda goes in for the raid, Mahender blocks him but Jaipur gets one point too as GB More had stepped out of bounds at the back. Bengaluru Bulls has used its review asking for a Super Tackle since they feel that More stepped out of bounds before the struggle happened leaving three others Bulls player on the mat. A successful review for Bulls as Super Tackle has been awarded.
Final strategic time out. Five minutes to go. Jaipur was beginning to reduce the deficit but that Super Tackle has made their job tougher again.
38-32: SUPER TACKLE!!!! Arjun went for the raid with just three Bulls players on the mat but he was somewhat made to run around the court to find a touch. He eventually went too deep to get a touch off Mahender which gave GB More the time to push him off the mat.
36-32: A massive dash by Deepak Singh and this time he manages to push Bharat off the mat successfully.
36-31: Arjun gets redemption. A touch point on Jaideep on the left corner who could not do anything to avoid it.
36-30: Arjun is keeping Jaipur in the game. A beautiful toe touch to send Pawan Sehrawat off the mat.
36-29: Another error from Pavan TR as he goes for an advanced tackle on Bharat.
35-29: Well done, Arjun. He came in for the raid, waited for the opportunity before getting a hand touch on substitute Mohit Sehrawat.
First strategic time out. Ten minutes to go and this match is nicely poised. Jaipur had a strong start, then Bulls came back and seemed to be running away with the game. However, Jaipur has pulled things back to some extent in the last few minutes.
35-28: Bonus for Bharat.
34-28: Toe touch of the highest quality from Arjun Deshwal and Mahender is off.
34-27: Bonus for Arjun Deshwal.
33-26: What is happening? It is a self-out for Deepak Hooda now who goes into the lobbies without a touch.
32-26: Pawan repeats the same mistake done a couple of raids ago and ruled self-out again.
32-24: SUPER 10 FOR BHARAT NARESH!!! What a match he is having. Bharat reaches the milestone with a touch point on Sandeep.
31-23: Self out for Pawan as he tries for a running hand touch on Deepak Singh on the right corner, misses it and enters the lobbies.
31-22: Sublime ankle hold by Jaideep and he brings down Arjun Deshwal for the second time in the match.
30-22: Ouch!!! Pawan Sehrawat goes in for the raid and gets a touch point with a brutal kick which hits Sahul in the face on the right corner.
29-22: SUPER 10 FOR ARJUN DESHWAL as he tries the bonus, does not get it but lures Bharat of all people into trying the ankle hold.
29-21: Pawan is in full flow now. Deepak Singh tried his best to push the hi-flyer off the mat with a dash but Pawan is just too good.
28-21: ALL OUT!!!! Strong ankle hold by Saurabh to take down Nitin Rawal who had picked up a bonus. This is incredible from Bulls.
25-20: Pawan gets Pawan. Bulls raider returns with a quick touch point off sub defender Pawan TR.
24-20: Deepak Hooda picks up a bonus.
24-19: Pawan Sehrawat joins the party. He first got a touch off Arjun at the back with an outstretched hand and then flew past Sandeep's block..
It seems like Jaipur Pink Panthers had prepared for a tough exam where the big question was supposed to be how to stop Pawan Sehrawat but instead, Bharat Naresh has appeared like an out-of-syllabus question and caught them off guard.
HALF-TIME: Bengaluru Bulls 22-19 Jaipur Pink Panthers
22-19: SUPER RAID!!!! ANOTHER MULTI-POINT RAID FOR BHARAT. He first got a touch with a back kick and then breezed past Sandeep Dhull and Deepak Singh's dash. Nine raid points already for the tall raider.
19-19: Needless thigh hold attempted near the baulk line by Pawan Sehrawat and Arjun escapes easily.
19-18: Bulls take the lead after a quick running hand touch for Pawan off Deepak Singh.
18-18: ALL OUT!!!! Sensational fightback from Bulls. Nitin Rawal, last man on the mat for Jaipur, went in for the raid and picked up a bonus but then got pushed off the mat.
14-17: Arjun picks up a bonus.
14-16: Superb work from Bharat. Another two-point raid. He first got a touch on Brijendra on the right corner and then took another off Sandeep who was too late in retreating.
12-16: Arjun picks another bonus.
12-15: Out of sync back hold attempted by Vishal and Deepak Singh. Two touch points for Bharat Naresh.
10-15: Arjun picks up a bonus.
10-14: Bharat goes in for the raid but does not have to do much as Sahul Kumar gets self-out.
9-14: ALL OUT!!! Deepak goes in but Saurabh simply surrenders. Time saved.
9-11: Ranjith went for another bonus but only found himself trapped in Brijendra's ankle hold. Bulls down to one.
9-10: Do-or-die raid for Bulls and Ranjith picks up a bonus.
8-10: You simply can't keep Deepak Hooda quiet for long. Do-or-die raid and a failed ankle hold from Jaideep.
8-9: Ranjith picks up a bonus.
7-9: Do-or-die raid for Jaipur, Arjun went in, waited before Aman at left corner got lured into attempting an ankle hold which was not good enough.
7-8: If Sandeep doesn't, then Sahul gets Pawan. The strategy is clear. Keep Pawan off the mat and increase your chances of winning.
7-7: Brilliant revival for Bulls. Pawan went in for the raid and got a touch on Sandeep with a powerfull kick and then escaped Deepak Singh's dash.
5-7: SUPER TACKLE!!!! Arjun went in with just Pawan and Jaideep, a substitute, on the mat but Jaideep came up with a clutch ankle hold to take the raider down.
3-7: Bulls down to two after Vishal and others flatten Bharat on the mat.
3-6: A running toe touch by Arjun Deshwal to send Mahender to the bench.
2-5: Outstretched hand on the left corner and Arjun gets a touch off Aman.
1-4: Excellent ankle hold by Saurabh to tackle the do-or-die raid specialist Deepak Hooda. Unfortunately, Saurabh had stepped out of bounds before the tackle.
1-3: Another Bulls raider goes down. This time it was Ranjith who picked the bonus but was then brought to the ground with a thigh hold by Sahul.
0-2: Wow!!! Pawan Sehrawat comes in for his first raid and Sandeep Dhull takes him down with a brutal back hold.
0-1: Arjun Deshwal comes in for the opening raid and quickly gets off the mark with a touch point off Mayur.
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TOSS - Bengaluru Bulls wins the toss and selects right side of the court. Jaipur Pink Panthers to raid first.
8:35pm: LINE-UPS!!!
Bengaluru Bulls: Pawan Sehrawat, Chandran Ranjith, Mahender Singh, Saurabh Nandal, Bharat Naresh, Mayur Kadam, Aman
Jaipur Pink Panthers: Sandeep Dhull, Vishal Lather, Arjun Deshwal, Deepak Niwas Hooda, Brijendra Choudhary, Deepak Singh, Sahul Kumar
In the first match of the evening, Haryana Steelers has beaten U Mumba 37-26 to move closer to securing a play-off spot.
8:20pm: The Jaipur Pink Panthers has won seven and lost six of its 14 matches against the Bengaluru Bulls. One game between the two sides has finished in a tie. The Bulls beat the Pink Panthers 38-31 in the teams’ first meeting this season.
8:10pm: After thrashing the Patna Pirates and beating Dabang Delhi, Jaipur Pink Panthers was looking like one of the teams to beat. But since those victories, it has succumbed to three straight losses and sits eighth on the points table. In its last game against the UP Yoddha, raider Arjun Deshwal ended his four-game wait for a Super 10, but couldn’t stop the Pink Panthers from losing the contest. Despite their recent results, Jaipur’s playoff destiny remains in their control, but a defeat on Sunday could prove to be a big blow to their top six aspirations.
8pm: One win in its last four matches has left the Bengaluru Bulls in a precarious position on the points table. It is fifth and has played a game more than U Mumba and Puneri Paltan, which currently occupy the sixth and seventh spot on the points table, and trail the Bulls by two and four points, respectively. A loss on Sunday, coupled with victories for U Mumba on Sunday and Puneri Paltan on Monday could see the Bulls drop out of the playoff spots with two games left. This is a crucial game for the Bulls and as close to must-win as it could get.
7:55pm: In the first game of the evening, Vikash Kandola's Haryana Steelers leads Fazel Atrachali's U Mumba 18-13 at half-time. Follow my colleague Nigamanth's live coverage here:
7:50pm: The 2022 edition of the Sportstar Aces Awards is back and we are celebrating the marvellous year for Indian Sports that 2021 was. From Neeraj Chopra and the other Olympic and Paralympic medallists to the Indian cricket team, we have a bunch of nominees who need your vote to win! Click here to VOTE!
7:4 0pm: In case if you're new to this sport, here's a simple explainer that covers all the rules of the game and the various terms such as 'All Out', 'Do-or-die' and 'Super Tackle'-
7:30pm: Hello folks and welcome to our PKL coverage for the day! The second game of the evening will see Bengaluru Bulls take on Jaipur Pink Panthers. Before we get to that, here's a recap of what went down in the PKL over the last fortnight -
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