PKL 2024 Highlights: Jaipur Pink Panthers edge out Gujarat Giants; Patna Pirates thrash Bengal Warriorz

Last raid of the night. Arjun comes in. He does not go for the super 10. He runs the clock down and secures a win without giving the Giants anything from this game. This game pushes Jaipur into the top 6.

Guman gets his super 10 as he persists beyond Reza’s tackle attempt. Half a minute to go. Jaipur has sealed the win. Arjun gets another point as he gets a touch on Himanshu who goes for him too close to the midline. His 100th point of the season.

Empty raid for Guman and he knows that won’t cut it. Shrikanth Jadav will now run the clock down. He is in no hurry, neither are the Panthers. One minute to go now. Panthers call for a timeout. And now the smile is gone from Ram Mehar Singh’s face.

Arjun keeps going with a cheeky touch on Rohit. The nine-point difference persists. 1.5 minutes to go in this game. 

Nine point deficit now. Guman gets a touch on Lucky Sharma again in the right corner. Desperate here is Gujarat. 

DOD raid for Jaipur. Arjun raids for the Panthers. He gets his point with a touch on Jitender. Under 2.5 minutes to go and the Giants have called for a timeout. They need to secure that seven-point gap at least to salvage a point, but is it time to think about it or will the Giants be audacious to still hunt for the win?

Under four minutes remain in this game. Seven points to sort out. When is Gujarat going to up the tempo? Neeraj runs the clock down. Rakesh almost puts in a pursuit. But he will be held and dashed out. No kick on Ankush but he goes deep and drowns. 

Reza Mirbagheri is on fire and he roars as he gets Nitin down. Pure wrestling move this. Empty raid follows for Arjun Deshwal. Guman is brought down by Lucky Sharma but Guman drags himself to the midline. 

Empty raid for Neeraj Narwal. Surjeet’s advanced tackle is a rookie error and gifts Rakesh a point. He knows he’s messed up there as he walks off. Giants defence then smacks Shrikanth Jadav to the floor. Jaipur gets the bonus though. Seven points the difference now. 

Guman comes in and Reza pounces on the man. Pulled back into the Jaipur half. Eight point difference remains. 

Empty raid for Guman. It looks like the instruction to him has been to not waste time. There’s a mountain of a deficit to hack down. Arjun looks like he’s been dashed out again. It looks like his body is out of the mat when he slides the hand in. Touch and go this and a replay will be seen to decide. “Arey baahar hai bhai,” says Ram Mehar Singh from the bench. Point to Giants, it is. 

Rakesh brings down Arjun Deshwal. Giants will be happy to see him on the bench. Guman wastes no time, gets the bonus. Neeraj Narwal though is happy to hunt, gets a touch on Rohit in the left corner. 

Jaipur’s momentum is on the up now. Ankush’s anklehold brings down Rakesh. Surjeet dashes to reinforce the tackle. Panthers have turned up the heat. Giants down to two. Arjun now has a touch on Mohit, a kick on the face almost. Himanshu, the last man standing, is sent out by Surjeet and there’s the ALL OUT. Massive lead for the Panthers. Giants caught sleeping. 10 minutes left in this game as a timeout is taken.

Arjun tries and tries but can’t get a point. Well done, Gujarat defence. It’s harder not to gift points in a game as fast as kabaddi. Empty raid for Rakesh. Neeraj goes in now and claims a big touch on Iranian Vahid Rezaeimehr. Gujarat does not have a review and can do nothing about it. 

Team effort in defence as Parteek is brought down. Surjeet blocks, Reza and Lucky come around to support. Three point lead for Jaipur now. 

Neeraj Narwal gets a bonus. Rakesh comes in again with four men on the mat for Jaipur. No point. Empty raid for Neeraj too. Parteek then goes in. He needs a touch. Someone needs to start controlling this game. But empty raid again. Under 15 minutes left in this half. Empty raid for Neeraj. Now Guman comes in on a DOD raid for the Giants. No bonus available. Guman is brought down by the Panthers defence. Lucky Sharma creeps up on him and drags him down. DOD raid for the Panthers now and it’s Arjun Deshwal raiding. He does the job with a point from a touch on Jitender. Easily slips out of an anklehold. Suddenly. two point lead for Jaipur. 

Couple of empty raids follow. Rakesh then comes in on a do-or-die raid for Gujarat and it looks like he’s managed a touch on Ankush. Rakesh thinks he has two, with Reza too. Reza pleads that he has not conceded the touch. Referees take a moment but it’s only a point that’s given to Gujarat. 

Rakesh raids now and will return empty handed. Shrikant Jadhav follows and while he tries to get his kick on the right corner, Jitender Yadav runs in low to dash him out. Shrikanth joins Arjun on the bench. Parity again. 

Arjun Deshwal is brought down along the left flank, Himanshu blocked his path and Arjun ran straight into him. 

Ankush Rathee brings down Parteek in the left corner for his first point of the night. 

Guman goes too deep in the Panthers half and Reza swallows him whole. Empty raid for Shrikant. Parteek Dahiya threatens the corners but goes back without a point. An empty raid for Neeraj Narwal and Jaipur brings an end to the first half. Jaipur has a slender one-point lead in this game. HALF TIME.

Bonus for Arjun. And yet again, even-steven! 

Three and a half minutes to go in this half. Neeraj Narwal is brought down by the left corner. DOD raid for Gujarat and Parteek has been sent. He does it well, with a touch on Surjeet no less. 

Empty raid for Parteek. Why are these boys not looking at bonuses? Very comfortable to get to the third raid. Dicey strategy this. Empty raid for Arjun. He has just three points from eight raids tonight. 

Empty raid for Arjun. Guman is finally brought down by Reza Mirbagheri. He has help from Lucky Sharma who runs in and cuts Guman’s run. Neeraj Narwal adds to Gujarat’s twitches with a massive touch on Balaji. 

Shrikanth Jadhav is now swallowed in the Gujarat half by Parteek Dahiya. What a block that. Straight to his core and he stops him in his tracks. Nicely done by Parteek. A little over six minutes to go in this half now. 

Guman sees off Ankush who comes with the chain to block him. He almost swats him out of the way and goes to safety. 

Parteek Dahiya comes in to raid now.. He’s barely raided in the first 10, just the one raid. He’s been brought out now to support Rakesh and Guman. Empty raid. He had a good game against Bengal a few days back. Guman now comes in and he keeps tempting that right corner - Lucky Sharma whose feeble anklehold does nothing. Shrikant Jadhav then does the same to Jitender. That was too high up in the mat too. Good tactics from Shrikanth. 

Shrikant Jadhav does well to use the lobby and send out Mohit who tries to dash him out. 

Empty raid for Guman. Surjeet is guiding Arjun Deshwal as he enters to raid and is happy to see it off safely. DOD raid for Gujarat and in comes Guman. Speed helps him get a touch on Reza who vehemently denies the touch. Point given to Giants and Reza walks to the bench. No review from Jaipur for this. Smart, at this stage. Time out taken. Under 10 minutes remain in this half. Nothing separates these teams. A big difference from the first game.

Empty raid for Parteek Dahiya. Neeraj Narwal then comes in and claims a touch on Balaji D. Gujarat is claiming there’s no point and it is reviewed. Was this review unneccessary so early in the game? The reviews have nothing conclusive to side with Balaji. He goes, the review goes for Giants. 

Arjun Deshwal gets a bonus plus a touch on Rohit. A very lifeless anklehold attempt and he pays by being sent to the bench. Even-steven. 

Arjun thinks he has a bonus, but he’s not given the point. He wants to review but is dissuaded. Guman keeps attacking the right corner. He gets a bonus from under Lucky Sharma’s nose. 

Arjun Deshwal gets a touch on Jitender Yadav. Subtle toe touch on the left corner defender. Guman chips away as he gets a touch on Reza Mirbagheri. Ram Mehar is happy. 

Empty raids for Guman and Neeraj Narwal. Surjeet now shows his experience as he brings down Rakesh. What a dash. We’ve seen him do this time and again. Just thrown out here. 

Gujarat gets a bonus from Rakesh. The defence works again as Himanshu brings down Shrikant Yadav now. Incredible strength on that ankle hold. Shrikant is a big man. 

Empty raid to start this game by Arjun Deshwal. Guman Singh’s momentum seems to be the same as the previous game. He is awarded a touch on Reza Mirbagheri. Low running hand touch from Guman. Shrikant Jadhav opens Jaipur’s account for the night as he gets a touch on Jitender Yadav. Ram Mehar Singh, the coach, consoles him - Koi baat nahin - as he comes back in. Neeraj Narwal brings down Guman Singh in the left corner to give Jaipur another point. Gujarat replies in kind by bringing down Arjun Deshwal. Himanshu gets his hand around Arjun’s neck, that’s a bit dangerous. 

So far, nothing separates the teams. 

Gujarat Giants team won the toss and selected Choice of court: Right

JPP: Arjun Deshwal, Surjeet Singh, Reza Mirbagheri, Neeraj Narwal, Shrikant Jadhav, Lucky Sharma Ankush Rathee 

GG: Rakesh, Mohit, Balaji D, Parteek Dahiya, Guman Singh, Himanshu, Jitender Yadav

Jaipur Pink Panthers have faced Gujarat Giants 14 times in the history of PKL.

Both teams have won 6 and lost 6 matches, while 2 matches ended in ties.

The previous contest between Jaipur Pink Panthers and Gujarat Giants ended in favour of the former. They won 45-36 in Season 10.

With 4 wins, 3 losses and a tie, Jaipur Pink Panthers are seventh on the PKL 11 points table with 25 points.

Gujarat Giants, meanwhile, have 12 points and are 12th on the points table. They have won 2 and lost 7 times.

Jaipur Pink Panthers head into this encounter on the back of a win against Bengaluru Bulls on November 12. They won the match 39-32 and it was their fourth win in Pro Kabaddi League Season 11.

Gujarat Giants also won their last match after beating Bengal Warriorz by a 47-28 scoreline on November 13.

With 115 points now in total in raiding, Devank tops the raiding charts. What an incredible season it has been for the youngster. 

Devank comes. Gets the bonus plus Nitesh too. And with that, Patna touches 50 points. The difference, 22 points. 30 seconds to go in this game. Devank has yet another point as he gets Shreyas. Pure speed. Sushil then gets a point slipping out of Ankit’s hold. Devank will finish this game, but Fazel Atrachali has a consolatory last laugh, with a monstrous ankle hold. But this will do nothing to undo the hammering Warriorz have suffered at the hands of the Pirates. What a looting this has been for the men in green. 

Maninder is brought down again, Ankit the man to tackle in. Devank comes in. Gets the bonus plus a touch on Vaibhav Garje. Sushil gets a point, slipping out of Deepak’s ankle hold. Little over a minute to go in this game. 

DOD raid for Warriorz. Shreyas Umbardand comes. Shreyas Umbardand drowns. Too easy. Again, Warriorz down to two men. Super tackle opportunity. Vaibhav put in an empty raid. Ayan then comes in and cleans up the Warriorz. THIRD ALL OUT INFLICTED. This is a mauling. Fazel is given a green card warning for jersey pulling. This game is well and truly out of the Warriorz’s reach. 

Four and a half minutes to go. The gap still 12 points. Ayan runs the clock down. Sushil legitimises the raid and comes. Devank now comes in for a do-or-die raid. He gets a touch on Nitesh Kumar who is hobbling off a bit. Outplayed are the Warriorz. 

Eight minutes to go. Sushil comes in to raid, but goes back empty handed. The next raid will be a do-or-die raid for Bengal. Not ideal at all. This is like dot balls in cricket. Just time and opportunity wasted. Empty raid for Deepak too. Fazel’s volume has increased now as he marshalls his defence. Vaibhav bore the brunt of that Fazel outburst. Sushil goes in for the DOD raid now and he fails and has to head to the bench. Patna’s homework is incredible. Fazel finally brings down Sandeep who came in for a DOD raid too. Meanwhile Ankit tackles Maninder. A night to forget for Mighty Mani. 

Sushil comes in to raid now with under 10 minutes to go and 13 points to bridge first. Gets a bonus. Devank targets Fazel again, but this time, Vaibhav Garje brings him down, nice block-dash this. Shreyas helps him out. Good work. Sushil goes to raid again.. Fazel asks him to target Deepak. Empty raid though for him. An empty raid for Sandeep too. 

It’s been too easy for Patna to target Fazel and his men tonight. True passing of the baton has happened in this season. A new generation has emerged to dominate. 

Nitin comes in to raid for Bengal. Goes to deep in the left and there’s enough men on the right to come in and drown him out. Bonus for Nitin, point for Patna. YET AGAIN, Bengal using the super tackle. This time, Sushil Kambrekar taking down Ayan. Incredible this, was quick, did not allow Ayan time to do anything. A strategic timeout is called with 10 minutes left in this game. The gap - 13 points.

Bengal comes in with the super tackle yet again. Sandeep is brought down by Shreyas Umbardand. Two points. Still a 15 point gap between these two sides. Shubham Shinde comes in for a raid now, almost mercifully allowing Bengal some time to breathe. 

Why has Bengal become this team? Fazel must be thinking the same as he sulks on the bench. Sandeep comes in now. Nitesh Kumar goes for his legs, but Sandeep is happy to jump over him. Ayan now stars in defence. Gets a hold on Maninder’s legs and brings him down. Maninder’s body language is terrible tonight. 

Empty raid for Maninder. Devank now gets a touch on Sushil Kambrekar and goes up to nine points. He again threatens Fazel who backs off. What a sprightly bunch. Empty raid for Nitin. Ayan returns. Is happy to unsettle the defence with his speed and manages to go fairly deep. Bonus for him. DOD raid for Bengal. Maninder gets a bonus. Devank comes in now and has Fazel Atrachali. Big kick on the Iranian. What a statement and what a way to get to a super 10!

Fazel has been revived. But will he be sent away again? Fazel catches Sandeep’s ankle. Shreyas Umbardand, I think, dashes him out. But Sandeep gets his hand past the midline. Now referees give the two points to Patna. Fazel reviews, almost desperately. That was a sloppy dash. But it looks like the review will be unsuccessful. Warriorz down again to one man. No reviews left for Bengal too. Nitin now again the last man standing. Can he be lucky the third time too and revive a few people? Nope. ALL OUT INFLICTED AGAIN. Warriorz in the trenches now. Oh no wait. Nitin gets bonus and a touch while he got out. Sushil is revived and then gives the surrender raid. Super 10 for Nitin Dhankhar. The one silver lining.

Two men on the mat for the Warriorz. Ayan is given a simple point, barely five seconds into his raid. Warriorz staring at another all out now. Nitin Dhankhar, last man standing for the Warriorz, gets a touch on Arkam Shaikh. A kick on the man. He has the bonus too. Ayan now gets Vaibhav Garje. Again down to one man. But NITIN! How about that. He gets two men. SUPER RAID. BONUS PLUS TWO. Ankit, Arkam Shaikh have to go. 

Look at the raid point meter. It should tell you everything you need to know about Bengal’s issues in this game. Maninder not firing is not helping the side’s confidence either. 

Ayan runs in with incredible speed and has a touch on Maninder. Blink and Mani missed! Lovely speed and core strength from Ayan. HALF TIME whistle goes off and Patna has a 12-point lead over the Warriorz.

Lot of assurance for Sushil from Fazel. His work is cut out for him. No bonus for the man. All these little empty raids will hurt Warriorz, as they have all season. It almost feels like they think there’s time to ease into this game. Meanwhile, Devank gets a bonus. Nitin comes in for a DOD ride and he is pushed out. Just no strategy. Arkam Shaikh doing the job all by himself. Devank meanwhile! What has he done. SUPER RAID. WARRIORZ WERE SLEEPING. Bonus and then two points including Fazel Atrachali. Incredible fitness and match awareness by Devank here. Fazel is stunned. Maninder finally gets a point with a touch on Ayan. Sandeep the sends out Shreyas Umbardand after which Sushil Kambrekar is brought down in the left corner by Ankit Jaglan this time. Everything is turning out green this evening.

A little over five minutes remain in this half. Devank goes in to raid but no bonus here, even though he thinks he has one. Maninder goes in for another try. Shubham Shinde has had the wood on him. Yet another empty raid. This is hard to watch. Some cheer for the Warriorz as Sandeep has been taken down by Vaibhav Garje this time. 

Ayan is brought down in the right corner. Mayur Kadam and Shreyas combine to bring him down. A substitution follows for the Warriorz. Vaibhav Garje comes in for Mayur Kadam. Patna is not disturbed by anything. Deepak sends Nitin out of the mat. Thrown off the mat. 

Maninder revived yet again. Empty raid by him yet again. But Sandeep will undo all the good work. TWO POINTS. Sandeep again goes for Fazel and the Hemraj and Maninder go in to do something that was just not needed. Fazel, the last man standing, goes in to raid. Gets the bonus but is brought down. ALL OUT INFLICTED.

Sandeep, such a technically good raider. He goes for Fazel but the touch doesn’t happen it seems like (or did it?). Mayur Kadam meanwhile goes to try and block him but is pushed aside. Too easy. Nitin then gets a bonus. Hemraj is subbed back. Devank is brought down yet again. What a fantastic sub, Hemraj. Super tackle specialist. Super tackles helping Warriorz stay alive here. 

10 minutes to go in this encounter now and the game’s first timeout will be taken. Four-point lead for the Pirates as it stands. 

Do or die raid for Bengal. Nitin the man tasked with this for the Warriorz. Error made by the Patna defence again. The clock was running out. Instead of allowing Nitin to run out and walk back, Arkam Shaikh comes in to tackle and is carried to the midline. Do or die raid for Patna too and Sandeep has a touch on Shreyas. 

Patna Pirates’ legacy as a good DOD raiding team is intact. 

Sandeep comes in for Patna and keeps triggering Fazel to perhaps overstep. But Fazel’s mat awareness is incredible. 

Bonus point for Nitin Kumar now. Warriorz are down to two men though. Point of worry. Super tackle opportunity on for the Warriorz. And a brilliant anklehold here on Ayan by Hemraj. Locked his leg. Fazel was tentative whether to get in but puts the backhold to seal the points. Good work. 

Devank meanwhile has a quick point, running hand touch on Shreyas. Big leap. Warriorz allowing speed to bamboozle them. Maninder comes in now to raid and he needs a point. Shubham Shinde has his number, this time clutching his shoulder and arjms so he cannot get his arms around. He was curled up like a pillow for Shubham. Too good from Patna. Clearly one side has done it’s homework. Ayan now has two points, mockery of that right defence. Unnecessary that second point. Nitesh Kumar, Sushil Kambrekar have to go. 

Devank has a touch on Mayur Kadam. Do-or-die (DOD) raid for Bengal now. Nitin now with the pressure on his shoulders. Patna’s defence does well to keep away but Deepak goes for his feet in the dying minutes of the raid. First point for the Warriorz now. 

Maninder begins for the Warriorz. He spends too much time looking for a way in and Shubham Shinde comes in with the block. Maninder doing exactly what Sachin did yesterday. Devank comes in for Patna and goes straight for Fazel looking for the bonus. He gets it. “Shabash” says coach Narender Redu. You know how hard it is to pick points from under Fazel’s nose. Nitin comes in for Bengal, but empty raid it is. Warriorz risk starting slow yet again. Too many games lost to slow starts for the men in blue. Ayan has now picked a bonus, this time at the right corner. Sushil Kambrekar is sent and Fazel says the right corner will come for you for sure. Be careful. He’s incredibly quick. But empty raid. Maninder has a worried look on his face already. 

Bengal Warriorz team won the toss and selected Choice of raid :Right

Patna Pirates: Ankit, Devank, Ayan, Deepak, Sandeep, Arkam Shaikh, Shubham Shinde

Bengal Warriorz: Fazel Atrachali, Nitesh Kumar, Shreyas Umbardand, Sushil Kambrekar, Maninder Singh, Mayur Kadam, Nitin Kumar

Shreyas comes in to replace Praveen Thakur who was a tad porous in the previous game. Sushil Kambrekar starts. Warriorz on the offensive in this game to counter the raid heavy Pirates unit. 

Jaipur Pink Panthers have faced Gujarat Giants 14 times in the history of PKL.

Both teams have won 6 and lost 6 matches, while 2 matches ended in ties.

The previous contest between Jaipur Pink Panthers and Gujarat Giants ended in favour of the former. They won 45-36 in Season 10.

With 4 wins, 3 losses and a tie, Jaipur Pink Panthers are seventh on the PKL 11 points table with 25 points.

Gujarat Giants, meanwhile, have 12 points and are 12th on the points table. They have won 2 and lost 7 times.

The larger context for any league is the international ecosystem it operates within. Iranian legend Fazel Atrachali had much to say about the health of international kabaddi in an exclusive chat with Saikat Chakraborty. Read the interview here.

Devank has been a talisman in raiding for the Pirates. Can Fazel Atrachali find a way to outsmart the young brigade in green?

Patna Pirates head into this contest after a defeat against Haryana Steelers on November 13. They lost the match 32-37 and it was their fourth loss in Pro Kabaddi League Season 11.

Bengal Warriorz also lost their last match against Gujarat Giants by a 28-47 scoreline on November 13.

Hello and welcome to Sportstar’s live coverage of the Pro Kabaddi League, which will take place at the Noida Indoor Stadium in Noida on November 15, 2024.

Patna Pirates take on Bengal Warriorz in the first match of the evening while Jaipur Pink Panthers will go up against Gujarat Giants in the second game. 

Stay tuned for previews, live coverage and more.