Defending champions Bengal Warriors got the better of Jaipur Pink Panthers by 31-28 in a nail-biting encounter in match 30 of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) season 8. A last-ditch super tackle from Mohammad Nabibakhsh earned a vital five points for the champions with the final raid when the scores were 29-28 in the favour of Bengal. The win sees Bengal go to fifth position on the table having played six matches.
First half dominance by Bengal
Coming into the contest the Bengal-based franchise had lost three in a row and were struggling for form. They started on the front foot dominating the early spoils of the contest. Maninder Singh was the pick of the bunch for Bengal as he picked up nine points in the first half. Opposition Jaipur were also not sitting back as Arjun Deshwal responded with seven points of his own in the first half. At the break, it was Bengal Warriors who lead the spoils with a four-point lead as the scores read 18-14.
Jaipur try to comeback
Jaipur had an impressive start to the second half but an early loss of review in the second half didn’t help their cause. Despite Deshwal’s fifth consecutive ‘Super 10’ in the PKL season 8, his efforts left his team short. Jaipur’s defense was all over the place before they spectacularly pulled a super tackle in the 28th minute on Maninder to make a comeback in the contest.
Milestone for Maninder
While the contest was 23-20 in favour of Bengal going into the final quarter, it was Maninder who was grabbing all the headlines. He picked his 800th raid point in the history of PKL in the second half as he added a feather to his impressive cap. He managed to pick up 13 points with 10 successful raids in the match. Maninder has also picked up the third-most points in this season of PKL with 55 points to his name, followed by Deshwal with 54.
The final five minutes proves decisive
With scores of 24-22, Bengal still had the slightest of edge in as they tried to consolidate on their early lead. A tackle on Maninder in the 37th minute though pulled Jaipur right back in the contest. The successful tackle was followed by a comprehensive raid as only one point separated the teams as the scores read 25-24 with less than two minutes to go.
Nabibakhsh comes to the rescue
The Iranian proved his worth as he raided with two successful points in the penultimate minute to take the score to 29-28 for Bengal. With the final raid of the match, it was the talismanic Iranian again who pulled a super tackle with just three defenders on the mat. The moment proved decisive as Bengal Warriors ran out winners by 31-28.
The win sees Bengal rise to 16 points and ends a losing streak of three matches. The defending champions will have work to do though as they try to reach the apex of the points table. They will next face Haryana Steelers on Friday (January 7) with a three-day break on offer. Jaipur, on the other hand, languishes ninth in the table with just 12 points from their opening five games with just two wins so far in the PKL season. They will next be in action on Thursday (January 6) as they take on home side Bengaluru Bulls.
