Welcome to Sportstar's coverage of the Pro Kabaddi League. This is Shyam Vasudevan and I will be taking you through today's PKL 8 match between Dabang Delhi and Bengaluru Bulls.
That brings us to the end of our Pro Kabaddi League coverage for the day. We will be back for Friday's final. See you then!
Meanwhile, 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:
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Dabang Delhi gets the better of Bengaluru Bulls to reach its second successive final! Naveen Kumar seemed to have hurt his ankle but it did not stop him from scoring 14 points to lead his side to a remarkable win. Pawan Sehrawat did really well and bagged 18 points, but the Bengaluru Bulls' misfiring defence failed to offer him the support he needed.
FULL-TIME! Dabang Delhi beats Bengaluru Bulls 40-35 to advance to a second successive final.
40-35 Pawan bags his 17th point of he game but its in vain as Dabang Delhi wins the contest.
40-34 That has to be the game. Bengaluru Bulls' faltering defence falters yet again and Naveen picks two more points.
38-34 Bharat gets rid of Manjeet and Pawan is back on the mat! Thirty five seconds to go.
38-33 Pawan makes a very costly mistake this time around - he tries an ankle hold on Naveen but the latter escapes to safety. Pawan should really have held back there.
37-33 Pawan is at it again - he bags another point and Dabang Delhi is down to three men!
37-32 Pawan evades yet another tackle from Joginder and it's now a five-point game.
"Get a bonus point and a touch point. We need an All Out," says Bengaluru Bulls coach Randhir Singh.
37-31 That is a very interesting raid from Neeraj. He goes in for the do-or-die raid, consumes all 30 seconds, and walks off the mat after failing to get a point.
Two and a half minutes to go and the Bulls trail by seven points!
37-30 Bharat grabs a couple of quick bonus points to reduce his side's deficit. Dabang Delhi coach Krishan Kumar Hooda is furious at his defence!
This has to be Naveen's most important Super 10 of the season. He's bearing an injury and has done extremely well to give his side the advantage.
37-27 Naveen, you beauty! He gets rid of Mayur and Mahender to hand his side a massive 10-point lead. SUPER 10 FOR THE NAVEEN EXPRESS!
"We are trailing by only eight points and there are five minutes to go. Just get Pawan back on the mat," says Bengaluru Bulls coach Randhir Singh.
35-27 This could be a huge moment here. Manjeet grabs hold of Pawan's ankle and Krishan takes care of the upper body to flatten Pawan on the mat.
34-27 Pawan gets involved in the tackle and Neeraj finds no escape route. A tense seven minutes to go!
34-25 SUPER RAID FROM NAVEEN! He gets rid of two defenders and bags a bonus point to undo all of Pawan's good work.
31-25 Joginder makes an advanced tackle and it's a poor one. Pawan drags Joginder to the mid-line.
31-24 Naveen chips at the Bulls defence as he sends Bharat to the bench.
Pawan has faded away after picking up that Super 10. He has found little to no success and has managed just one point in nearly 20 minutes now, while Neeraj has bagged five points in two raids for Dabang Delhi!
30-23 Neeraj picks up another point to add to the Bulls' misery. Little over 10 minutes to go!
29-23 ALL OUT FOR DABANG DELHI! Sandeep comes in with another fantastic tackle as he traps Abolfazel Maghsodlo in a stunning ankle hold. Dabang Delhi leads by six with 12 minutes left on the clock.
26-22 Naveen is back on the mat and he wriggles out of Jaideep's ankle hold. The Bulls are down to one last player - Abolfazel Maghsodlo.
25-21 SUPER RAID FROM NEERAJ! He performs in Naveen's absence and gets past not one, not two, but THREE Bulls players! And Pawan was one of the three!
22-21 Pawan is back on the mat and makes an instant impact.
22-20 SUPER TACKLE FOR BENGALURU BULLS! Mahender produces a brilliant tackle as he grabs Naveen's ankles. Abolfazel Maghsodlo offers the support and the Bulls are now two points away.
22-18 Naveen gets the better of Aman, one of Bengaluru Bulls' best defenders! The Bulls are reduced to three men and are in a spot of bother.
21-18 Bharat is yet to open his account as he runs into a human wall in Manjeet. Bharat has looked very off-colour today.
20-18 Vijay strikes now as he evades Saurabh's tackle. Dabang Delhi back to having five men on the mat.
19-18 SUPER TACKLE FOR DABANG DELHI! Krishan single-handedly tosses Pawan off the court to give his side the lead!
17-18 Neeraj is taken out right away and Dabang Delhi is down to three men.
HALF-TIME: Bengaluru Bulls has a slender one-point lead at the interval. Barely anything to separate the two sides at the break! Pawan Sehrawat has been in phenomenal form as he raced to a Super 10 in just about 10 minutes, while Naveen has managed only four. Dabang Delhi is yet to really fire, in attack or defence, while the Bulls will also need to solidify its defence. An interesting 20 minutes await us!
16-17 Manjeet come in for the do-or-die raid but he's taken out in quick time as Saurabh and Mayur flatten him on the mat.
16-16 That's a really good tackle from Sandeep as he latches on to Bharat's ankle. Solid work from Sandeep to claim his second tackle point of the game.
15-16 Naveen has been sent off the mat as he Saurabh launches into a stunning double thigh hold.
15-15 Chandran on the do-or-die raid but he finds no success. He seems to have picked up an injury as he ran into Joginder here. They both clattered heads and Chandran is getting medical attention on the mat. The Dabang Delhi has a bruise on his right cheekbone.
14-15 That is a superb tackle from Mahender as he darts from the left and pushes Vijay off the mat. Dabang Delhi has challenged the umpire's decision...Dabang Delhi has lost its review.
14-14 Pawan has been tackled! He goes deep into the right corner and the duo of Krshan and Joginder pin him to the mat.
13-14 Vijay strikes in Naveen's absence as he escapes Mayur's weak ankle hold.
Eleven points from nine raids for Pawan. What a stunning game he's having!
12-14 Pawan leaps over Jeeva to pick up another point with finesse.
12-13 Bengaluru Bulls is back in the lead as Pawan escapes Sandeep's dash. SUPER 10 FOR PAWAN, ALREADY!
11-11 Look who Pawan has eliminated - Naveen! Joginder stepped off the mat and Naveen was distracted by it. Pawan seizes the opportunity and gets a touch on Naveen.
10-10 Pawan gets the better of Jeeva, yet again, and also grabs a bonus to bring his side back on level terms.
10-8 Vijay raids for Dabang Delhi and he's taken out in a jiffy.
10-7 ALL OUT FOR DABANG DELHI! The defence comes good to usher Pawan off the mat and the All Out is awarded to Dabang Delhi. A three-point for Dabang Dehi inside the opening seven minutes!
7-6 Saurabh lets Naveen escape...but the latter limps into his half. Something to worry about for Dabang Delhi?
6-6 Pawan gets a point and it's the big one - Manjeet Chillar! Pawan also managed a bonus to restore parity.
6-4 Naveen gets rid of GB More and the Bulls have just one man on the mat - Pawan.
5-4 Dabang Delhi takes the lead as Sandeep Narwal makes a fine ankle hold to deny Bharat. The Bulls are down to two men!
4-4 That is what a speedy raider does! Naveen carries so much speed that he forces Aman into the lobby!
3-3 Naveen brings the scores back to level terms as he gets a running hand touch on Mahender.
1-3 Vijay raids successfully and that will revive Naveen!
0-3 Pawan is at it again as he lands a monstrous kick on Joginder Narwal chest! That's going to leave a mark.
0-2 Naveen Kumar has been relegated to the bench! Aman traps him in an iron clad ankle hold and that's that!
0-1 Pawan Sehrawat gets off the mark right away as he evades Jeeva's dash.
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8:40PM: LINEUPS:
BENGALURU BULLS: Pawan Sehrawat, Bharath, Chandran Ranjit, Mayur Kadam, Mahender Singh, Saurah Nandal, Aman
DABANG DELHI: Naveen Kumar, Ashu Malik, Jeeva Kumar, Joginder Narwal, Manjeet Chhillar, Vijay, Sandeep Narwal
8:35pm: JUST IN: PATNA PIRATES have made the final of the Pro Kabaddi League season 8 with a 38-27 win over UP Yoddha. Beware Bulls and Delhi.
8:25pm: HEAD TO HEAD
Dabang Delhi have won eight and lost six of their 16 matches against Bengaluru Bulls. The two teams have shared the spoils twice. Bengaluru trounced Delhi 61-22 in their first meeting this season, while the second finished in a 36-36 tie.
This is the second straight season where the Bulls and Delhi will go head-to-head for a spot in the final. Delhi beat Bengaluru 44-38 in their semifinal clash last season.
8:15pm: PREVIEW:
Dabang Delhi finished second on the points table, but it has been far from an easy campaign for last year’s beaten finalists. Naveen Kumar, who got off to a hot start this season, picked up a knee injury midway through the campaign and has been struggling ever since. Vijay has stepped up in the reigning MVP’s absence, while Ashu Malik and Neeraj Narwal have also made timely contributions.
Delhi’s defence has been surprisingly poor this season. They are averaging only 8.41 tackle points per game, which ranks 11th in the league. Only one other team in PKL history has made it to the playoffs while averaging fewer tackle points in the league stage than Delhi has this season (Bengal Warriors with 8.27 in Season 5). The defence will need to bring their A-game and Naveen will have to deliver a big performance if Delhi are to reach the final for the second straight year.
We discussed both semifinals along with our viewers/listeners/readers a while back. Check it out here
The Bengaluru Bulls ’ rough form in the second half of the season put their playoff participation in jeopardy. But they managed to do just enough to finish in the top six and make it to the playoffs. They trounced the Haryana Steelers 46-24 in their last league stage match before putting on a clinical show against the Gujarat Giants in Eliminator 2 and beating them 49-29.
The star of the show on both nights was skipper Pawan Sehrawat, who scored a Super 10 and a High 5 against the Steelers and 13 points against the Giants. The Hi-Flyer surpassed the 300-point mark for the season during the Bulls’ win over Gujarat and became only the second player to record multiple campaigns with over 300 points. Bengaluru will bank on their skipper to guide them past Delhi and into the VIVO Pro Kabaddi League final.
8:10pm: 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!
8:10pm The first semifinal is underway and Patna Pirates has taken a massive lead against UP Yoddha. Follow that game LIVE here -
8pm: Hello folks and welcome to the second semifinal game of the evening! Last season's runner-up Dabang Delhi will take on season six champion Bengaluru Bull for a spot in the final. Before we get to that, here's a recap of what went down in the PKL over the last fortnight -
ALSO READ | PKL notebook: Patna Pirates packs a punch
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