Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - Jaipur Pink Panthers show Glimpses of last year enroute Thumping Win over Bengaluru Bulls

Day 3 of leg 3 and Jaipur Pink Panthers were in desperate need of a win. Jasvir Singh started the proceedings and oh what a start it was. He managed to get a running hand touch on the Giant Killer, Manjeet Chillar. First half was a nervous encounter with both teams exchanging 1 point leads. At the 15 minute mark, Manjeet Chillar faced 2 Jaipur Pink Panthers defenders. Pushing Rohit Rana back, he tried to dodge Gangadhari Mallesh and was almost successful but Mallesh put on a strong ankle hold on Manjeet Chillar and Rohit Rana came back to grab the prized raider for a super tackle. Abhishek Bachchan and his comrades looked pumped post this tackle and a Jaipur Pink Panther revival was on their minds. The last minute of the first half was a total ‘Paisa Vasool’ minute. Jaipur Pink Panthers trailed 10-15 and Kuldeep Singh came in to raid against all 7 of Bengaluru Bulls’ defenders. He was tackled but somehow managed to get a finger behind the mid-line for a super raid of 4 points.

Post this raid, Manjeet Chillar was tackled for an unsuccessful raid. The situation was ripe for Jasvir Singh as he came in to earn an all-out for his side and this is exactly what he did as the Jaipur Pink Panthers converted a 5 point deficit to a 4 point lead. This lead was never relinquished as they won the match by a comfortable margin of 13 points. Both, Ajay Thakur and Manjeet Chillar looked off colour in this encounter. Although it’s too early to call, Jaipur Pink Panthers did show exactly why they won Pro Kabaddi League 2014. If this is something to go by, Jaipur Pink Panthers might still have it in them to reach the semi-finals of this year’s edition.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - Big Wins for Bengaluru Bulls & Telegu Titans

It was day 2 of leg 3 at the Sawai Mansingh Indoor Stadium and Dabang Delhi took on the Bengaluru Bulls. The first 10 minutes were even stevens at 4-4 but Dabang Delhi sprung into life taking a 3 point lead. Now it was Bengaluru Bulls’ turn and they took the lead at 8-7. As if this was not enough, multiple tackles from Somvir Shekhar (a super tackle and a great solo ankle hold on Kashiling Adake) and a super raid from Manjeet Chlliar took the game far from Dabang Delhi as the score read 17-8 at the end of the first half. Dabang Delhi never got back into the match as Bengaluru Bulls kept on stretching their lead further. An Ajay Thakur super raid for 3 points and multiple unsuccessful raids from the raiders of Dabang Delhi kept Bengaluru Bulls on track to win the match 33-18. That was one of the most dominating wins of Pro Kabaddi League 2015 and it was achieved in great fashion. Rohit Kumar Chaudhary held the front for his team with 6 raid points which was not even close to enough as a great raiding effort from Manjeet Chillar coupled with defensive brilliance from Somvir Shekhar helped the Bengaluru Bulls achieve this win.

The second match of the night was between defending champions Jaipur Pink Panthers and potential title contenders Telegu Titans. This match started off on a high as Jasvir Singh put on his dancing shoes but went back for an empty raid. Casual in his retreat, Sandeep chased him but didn’t get a touch. Prashant Chavan looked to capitalize on this but was caught off guard as Sandeep managed to turn himself and get his legs across the mid-line.

At 3-3, Rahul Chaudhari came into raid but was strongly blocked by Rohit Rana. Daler Mehndi was also present watching this enthralling match. First half ended with Telegu Titans leading at 8-7. Early on in the second half, Rahul Chaudhari came in to raid. With 2 defenders remaining, Rahul Chaudhari managed to touch them both for a 4 point super tackle. Rajesh Narwal, though a good defender, stepped up in attack due to a lacklustre performance from an inconsistent Jasvir Narwal. The once feared Jaipur Pink Panthers defense was made to look clumsy by Rahul Chaudhari and Sukesh Hegde who combined for a 16 point raid point tally to give Telegu Titans a 33-22 win over Jaipur Pink Panthers.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - Patna Pirates Humble Jaipur Pink Panthers, U Mumba make it 6 Consecutive Wins

The action shifted to Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. It was a Super Sunday like never before as Jaipur Pink Panthers faced the Patna Pirates in their first home game this season. Looking to get back their lost form of Pro Kabaddi League Season 1, Jaipur Pink Panthers went into this match on the back of 2 consecutive defeats. This was a match of Patna Pirates’ attack vs. Jaipur Pink Panthers’ defense. History suggested a high-scoring encounter between these two sides but the present didn’t suggest it. Jaipur Pink Panthers went into the break leading 11-10. This looked a cagey affair as no one was giving the other room for movement on the famed Kabaddi mat. The second half was a much more open encounter as both teams battled to edge out each other. Jasvir Singh stepped up again for Jaipur Pink Panthers and was very aptly supported by Rajesh Narwal in attack but it was not enough as Patna Pirates managed to grind out a 23-29 win. Their captain, Rakesh Kumar, led from the front earning a total of 8 points with Sandeep Narwal supporting him in attack as well as defense. It was the same story for the home side as it all unraveled for them in the last 5 minutes of the game. Pakistani defender Waseem Sajjad was a big no-show on the night.

If the first match was interesting, the contest between U Mumba and Telegu Titans was a must watch. 5-star raider Anup Kumar started things off but returned empty handed. At 1-1, Deepak Nivas Hudda came in for a do-or-die-raid but was no match for the combination of Surinder Nada and Vishal Mane as they slammed him on the ground. Rishank Devadiga has quietly earned himself the title of a do-or-die-raid specialist for U Mumba and added another 2 points to his kitty from it. At 10-6 in favour of Telegu Titans, Pawan Kumar stepped in to prevent an all-out for his side and revive a few of his team-mates. As a substitute for Shabeer Bapu last season, he did well for himself. But this was not the case as Deepak Nivas Hudda caught him in an ankle hold which earned Telegu Titans 3 points as a result of a U Mumba all-out. When the going gets tough, the tough get going. This is perfectly applicable to Anup Kumar who always steps up for U Mumba when they are down. This was the case when they trailed 15-8 and Anup Kumar earned 2 points in a brilliant raid to reduce the margin. The first half ended as Telegu Titans lead 17-11. Majority of that lead can be contributed to Telegu Titans keeping Shabeer Bapu quiet. Anup Kumar has this knack of standing up for his team in crucial situations and was once again doing the same when U Mumba trailed 14-20.

Going up against all 7 Telegu Titans’ defenders, he managed to squeeze out a crucial 2 points and thereby reduced the gap to 4. With the scores at 24-23 in favour of Telegu Titans, the last 5 minutes looked poised for heroes in the making. Well, it was a Gladiator, Anup Kumar who stepped up and took another 2 points to give his side the lead by a single point thanks to a successful review. Into the last minute and Sukesh Hegde raided for his side. He earned a point and reduced Telegu Titans’ trail to a point. Shabeer Bapu had 12 unsuccessful raids on the night and was sent in to raid. Oh what a raid it was as he managed to squeeze out a touch point to increase U Mumba’s lead to 2 points. Sukesh Hegde stepped up again and managed a solitary point but it was all over for his side as U Mumba squeezed out a 27-26 win. Anup Kumar was the star of this match earning 9 very important raid points.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - Bengaluru Bulls beat Puneri Paltan for 4th consecutive loss, Dabang Delhi defeat injury hit Bengal Warriors

Day 8 of Pro Kabaddi League 2015 looked an exciting prospect for viewers as teams in the bottom of of the table looked to out-perform each other to earn a semi-final slot. The first match of the night between Bengaluru Bulls and Puneri Paltan got off to a slow start with multiple empty raids in the first 5 minutes but picked up momentum as the score was 10-6 post 10 minutes in favour of Puneri Paltan. Bengaluru Bulls managed to reduce the gap and trailed by a point at half time. The second half started on a better note as Bengaluru Bulls took the lead due to a successful raid from Rajesh Mondal and a brilliant tackle on Pravin Niwale. Puneri Paltan were down to 2 men and in came Manjeet Chillar. Looking to inflict an all-out, he was caught in a superb double thigh-hold by Manoj Kumar earning his side 2 points thanks to that super tackle. There was drama as well. Manjeet Chillar came in to raid under the same circumstances and this time a Puneri Paltan defender stepped out ruling out his super tackle on Chillar. Bengaluru Bulls never looked like having trailed in the game as made had a strong grip and ran away with the match. Bulls won the game 31-26 to hand Puneri Paltan their fourth loss on the trot. In spite of a heroic effort by Manoj Kumar, it was not enough to get his team across the line (no pun intended).

The second game of this night was at Netaji Subhash Indoor Stadium. This was the last home game for Bengal Warriors and an injury hit side looked to make the most out of it against Dabang Delhi. Captain of the home side, Dinesh Kumar, came in for his side’s second raid. He was successful in getting a running hand touch much to the delight of the fans. Kids were dancing and cheering their home side as if they had won the second edition of Pro Kabaddi League only clueless of what the future held for their beloved. 14 minutes into the game and both sides were on level terms when the tall Rohit Kumar Chaudhary came in to raid. He was tackled by 4 Bengal Warrior defenders but somehow managed to get that tall arm of his across the mid line for a super raid earning him and his side 3 points in the process.

Late into the first half, Dinesh Kumar was the solitary man for Bengal Warriors. Coming in to raid, he was successfully tackled which helped Dabang Delhi earn 3 points thanks to an all-out. The first half ended as Dabang Delhi lead 15-10. Both the Korean players appeared for Bengal Warriors and were strong in defense making multiple tackles including a super tackle. The depleted Bengal Warriors never looked threatening as Dabang Delhi won the game 32-21 in convincing fashion.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - Dabang Delhi overcome a Spirited Fightback from Puneri Paltan, U Mumba make it 6 out 6 Wins

Day 7 of Pro Kabaddi League 2015 and we had the home side Puneri Paltan squaring off against Dabang Delhi at Netaji Indoor Stadium. Kashiling Adake and Rohit Kumar Chaudhary made some superb raids to put Dabang Delhi ahead at half time as the scores read 25-11 in their favour. Rohit Kumar Chaudhary had 2 super raids earning him a total of 7 raid points whereas Kashiling Adake had the one for a tally of 3 points. Wazir Singh was the lone ranger for Puneri Paltan as he kept fighting for his team. And it was this fighting spirit which helped him earn 7 points from his first 4 raids of the 2^nd half to bring the deficit down to 4 points. With Dabang Delhi facing an all-out, Pravin Niwale came in to raid and got 2 of their defenders for a successful raid. Sandeep Tomar was their last man standing and while looking to revive some of his team-mates got caught the Paltan’s defense for an all-out. The comeback of this Pro Kabaddi League 2015 tie seemed to be complete with Puneri Paltan leading 31-32 as only 7 minutes remained in this game. But, mind you, the game of Kabaddi is not gaining ground in India for no reason. As we entered the last minute of the game, scores were level and in stepped Wazir Singh for the buzzer raid. Was the comeback complete? Oh, I almost forgot, it was a do-or-die-raid. He had to go all out to get the Puneri Paltans the win. Looking for a touch, he got tackled successfully which led to Dabang Delhi getting the win by a point. Wazir Singh and Puneri Paltan were left heartbroken as Dabang Delhi rejoiced in their opponents backyard.

In the 2^nd match of the night, Bengal Warriors faced U Mumba who had a 100% win record to defend. Anup Kumar, the man India loves to watch, started off the proceedings for U Mumba but was pushed off the court in splendid fashion by a solo effort from Bajirao Hodage. At half-time, U Mumba were slightly ahead at 11-9 with Mohit Chillar tackling Mahendra Ganesh Rajput using a WWE-like two-handed Spinebuster. 

After 32 minutes, U Mumba trailed 23-16. Anup Kumar took upon himself the challenge of getting U Mumba back into the game and did so in grand style with a super raid of 3 points. Another Anup Kumar raid, another 2 points as the score was 23-22 in favour of Bengal Warriors. At the 35 minute mark, U Mumba took the lead with a surrender raid from Anup Kumar leading to a Bengal Warrior all-out. There was no looking back for them as the game ended as the scores read 25-29 in favour of U Mumba. They made it 6 out of 6 and maintained their 100% record. Anup Kumar and Jeeva Kumar starred for U Mumba in attack and defense respectively.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - Bengal Warriors Lose the Plot in the Final Minute against Telegu Titans

Bengal Warriors, on the back of winning a close game over the defending champions, had momentum on their side along with the home crowd. Looking to impress in Pro Kabaddi League 2015, Dinesh Kumar stepped in to raid. Eager to earn points, he was looking for a toe touch but was dashed off the court by the Telegu Titans defense. Early on in the game, Telugu Titans had built a 3 point lead and in stepped Jang Kun Lee for a do-or-die-raid. Guess what? He touched Rahul Chaudhari, the Titans most successful raider, to earn a point for his side. Now it was a do-or-die-raid for Telegu Titans and Meraj Sheykh was handed the responsibility. Looking for a touch point with a back kick, he was caught in a thigh-hold by Sachin Khambe. In the 12^th minute, Deepak Nivas Hudda came to raid and with already 3 points in his kitty, he looked on song. Parveen Jangra had other ideas as he tackled him from behind with support from his defense to level the score at 6-6. Not only was Deepak Nivas Hudda raiding successfully, he also contributed to the Telegu Titans’ defense with an ankle of his own on Sunil Jaipal. Sachin Khambe hates the stench of defeat and loves the perfume of victory as he tackled Sukesh Hegde with an ankle hold to put his side 3 points ahead. As the score read 13-10, Jang Kun Lee stepped in to raid. Looking for a toe touch, he got away from an unsuccessful ankle hold and in his momentum managed to touch 2 more of Telegu Titans’ defenders to earn 3 points in a super raid. The 1^st half ended with Bengal Warriors having a comfortable 6 point lead. They looked to be in cruise control of this match and wanted to make it 2 out of 2 at home. Even Charu Sharma gave a standing applause to the home side on their 1^st half performance.

The 2^nd half of this enthralling Pro Kabaddi League 2015 match started on a fantastic note with Prashant Rai coming in to raid. He managed to get away from a Dinesh Kumar tackle to earn his side 2 points and more importantly get rid of a top player in Dinesh Kumar. One of the moments of the match was when Jang Kun Lee came to raid. He managed to get a touch point and as he rushed back to his half, Rahul Chaudhari came barging in for his raid. That excitement was unnecessary on his part as he was caught hold of by the Bengal Warriors’ defense. At this stage the score was 18-14 in favour of Bengal Warriors. Rahul Chaudhari looked off colour but shrugged it off in style by acrobatically jumping over Nilesh Shinde to earn his side a point. With the lead diminishing down to a single point, Sunil Jaipal put in a super raid of his own to get 4 points for his side. With just 2 of Bengal Warriors defenders remaining, Deepak Nivas Hudda managed to evade Sunil Jaipal’s tackle for a successful raid. The responsibility lied on Jang Kun Lee to get atleast a point for his side while preventing an all-out but was unsuccessful. The score differential was again back to a point as we stepped into the business end of the match. In the 36^th minute, Jang Kun Lee managed a total of 3 points for his side (2 touch points and 1 bonus point) to increase Bengal Warriors’ lead to 2 points. Into the last 2 minutes and the youngster Sandeep came to the fore for Telegu Titans as he dashed off Jang Kun Lee out of the court. As we came to the penultimate raid of the match, scores were 30-29 in favour of Bengal Warriors with Rahul Chaudhari coming in to raid. He only had 1 touch point to his name until now and looked to get more for Telegu Titans. Oh what a raid it was as he managed to get 2 touch points to give the lead to his side. The score was 30-31 in favour of Telegu Titans and Sunil Jaipul stepped in to raid. This was the buzzer raid and the comeback was complete for Telegu Titans as they won the match by a mere 2 points. Jang Kun Lee seemed to get his touch back and the Bengal Warriors will be hoping for the same.

With 2 of the most difficult matches for Bengal Warriors out of the way, they will take on the most successful side of Pro Kabaddi League 2015, U Mumba. I doubt if they have enough strength to beat my home side. Only time will tell though.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - Manjeet Chillar Inspired Bengaluru Bulls Romp to Victory over Patna Pirates

It was time for the 2^nd game of the night. Lo and behold the Bengaluru Bulls versus the Patna Pirates. Bengaluru Bulls were without their star raider Ajay Thakur but this didn’t stop them from claiming a victory over the Patna Pirates in this tie of the Pro Kabaddi League 2015. Rakesh Kumar had a point to prove as he had a pointless 1^st game. But that seemed in the past as he was successful in his very 1^st raid and a total of 6 points in the match. Rakesh Kumar, owner of Patna Pirates, seemed to be a happy man while watching Rakesh Kumar make a successful raid. Patna Pirates seemed to be confident early on and Sandeep Narwal looked lively while raiding. Only thing in his way was the Bull himself, Manjeet Chillar, who threw him out of the court for a brilliant tackle. In the 11^th , Manjeet Chillar stepped in for a do-or-die-raid and was exquisite in showing off his dodging abilities to gain his first raid point in his 5^th raid. At the end of the 1^st half, Bengaluru Bulls lead by 8 points. Mohammed Shami was in the stadium to support the Patna Pirates.

Early on in the 2^nd half, Sandeep Narwal was the last man standing for Patna Pirates but was unsuccessful and thrown out for an all-out. Bengaluru Bulls lead by 13 points at this stage and were cruising ahead. Patna Pirates did put up a spirited fight late in the 2^nd half but Bengaluru Bulls had more than enough in them and finished off the game as the score read 31-26. Manjeet Chillar made multiple strong tackles on Rakesh Kumar but didn’t let him settle and finished with a brilliant tally of 11 points on the night.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - Bengal Warriors Come from Behind Thanks to a Samarjeet Singh Mistake

Surprise, Surprise!!! Bengal Warriors come from behind to beat the reigning and defending champions, Jaipur Pink Panthers in this tie of Pro Kabaddi League 2015. They have definitely started on the right foot in their home leg and should look to take this momentum forward. It was 2 time Asian Games gold medalist, Dinesh Kumar leading his team out on to the mat. Showing glimpses of his glorious past in the previous match, Dinesh started raiding for his side but returned empty handed. Korean Jang Kun Lee started well for his side taking the scalp of Jasvir Singh in his very 1^st raid and ultimately 3 raid points on the night. Jasvir Singh was the star performer for his side earning 9 points for his side but all in vain. At the end of the 1^st half, Bengal Warriors trailed Jaipur Pink Panthers by 3 points as the score read 12-15.

Gangadhari Mallesh came in to raid for Jaipur Pink Panthers and was looking for a bonus. Instead he was lucky to get 2 more victims and 3 points for his side. The score read 18-12 in favour of Jaipur Pink Panthers and they looked in a comfortable spot. Jasvir Singh looked to be in supreme touch and earned 2 more points in a successful raid for his side. 31 minutes into the game and Jaipur Pink Panthers had a lead of 8 points with Jasvir Singh coming to raid to further strengthen his team’s position. But Bengal Warriors had other ideas as they pinned him down for a super tackle. Mahesh Goud had a successful 2^nd half coming on as a substitute and earning 3 valuable points for his side.

The last 2 minutes of this game were the craziest that I have ever seen in a Pro Kabaddi game. Bengal Warriors trailed by 5 points and in steps Mahendra Ganesh Rajput for his raid. Even the commentators got him confused with Mahesh Goud in the excitement. He made a successful raid and earned his side 2 more points. As the score read 23-26 in favour of Jaipur Pink Panthers, Jasvir Singh started his raid. Don’t let his build fool you my friends as he is a very agile raider. But Nilesh Shinde had other ideas who grabbed both his legs in a successful tackle to earn his side another point and close the gap. As we entered the last minute, Bengal Warriors captain Dinesh Kumar made a successful raid to decrease the gap to a solitary point. With the last raid of the game, in stepped the last man for Jaipur Pink Panthers, Samarjeet Singh. He was supposed to keep it simple and waste the time without getting tackled. But he wanted to taste glory and was caught to give the Bengal Warriors a great, comeback win. Kolkata is surely going to remember this moment and savour it during Pro Kabaddi League 2015.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - Next Destination............Kolkata

With the Mumbai leg of Pro Kabaddi League 2015 over, we now move over to the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Indoor stadium in Kolkata for the next 4 days. Considering the fact that Bengal Warriors have played a solitary match against Bengaluru Bulls which they lost by 8 points resulting in them getting no points, it will be interesting to see how they perform at home.

Dinesh Kumar, captain of Bengal Warriors, lead from the front with 6 points with 5 successful raids. For his team, I would certainly love to see him perform for the sake of his team. Bengal Warriors will be playing 4 matches at home most notably against the in-form U Mumba and Telugu Titans. There is great potential in this Bengal Warriors team with defenders like Nilesh Shinde and Bajirao Hodage who when complemented by raiders like Jang Kun Lee and the captain Dinesh Kumar can give even the best team a fight for their. They didn’t do justice to themselves in Pro Kabaddi League 2014 where they finished a dismal 2nd from bottom but they can improve very much on their performance. I’m sure Kolkata will be hoping for the same.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - U Mumba Achieve the Unthinkable, Win all Home games

Last season, U Mumba won 3 games and drew 1 in their home leg. Coming back to Pro Kabaddi League 2015, U Mumba have won 3 games and were on the verge of doing the unthinkable, winning all their home games which was never done by any team before. Well, the only problem was that they were facing the mighty Wazir Singh and his Puneri Paltan.

The game started at a slow pace with both captains, Anup Kumar and Wazir Singh, returning back empty handed from their raids. After 10 minutes into the 1^st half, U Mumba led 6-4. Wazir Singh was the star performer for Puneri Paltan earning majority of their points in the half. The half ended as the score read 10-9 in favour of U Mumba. It didn’t seem like the Puneri Paltan was going to let U Mumba achieve something unheard of by winning all their home games.

Bajrangi Bhaijaan Salman Khan was also in the Dome to see his home side before they leave for Kolkata to face the home side Bengal Warriors. Debutant Mahipal Narwal after taking a point in his very first raid brought the score level with another raid point early on in the 2^nd half. U Mumba’s defense was at it again with their super tackles. This time though, it was a raider Anup Kumar catching hold of his counterpart Wazir Singh with the support of Mohit Chillar to increase his teams lead. Another super tackle by U Mumba. Same victim, same number of points earner but the hunter was another raider Shabeer Bapu with Mohit Chillar again providing fantastic support. U Mumba went ahead 16-13 but Pravin Niwale earned  points for Puneri Paltan to make the score 16-15. Before you know it, the home side was down to one man and as soon as his raid started, he was plucked out by Paltan’s defense. 

Scores were closer than expected by me till the 31^st minute until U Mumba turned the screws in attack earning points on multiple occasions. Wazir Singh came on as the lone ranger for his raid and after earning a bonus point was looking for more victims but was unsuccessful. This lead to Puneri Paltan being all-out. The final score read 28-21 in favour of U Mumba. Voila! U Mumba had achieved the unachievable by winning all their home matches in Pro Kabaddi League 2015 which has never been done before. Shabeer Bapu was the star performer of the match earning 8 points for his side.

I hope this form can be carried forward by U Mumba and this time they go one step further and lift the Pro Kabaddi League 2015 trophy.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - U Mumba continue their Dominance against Patna Pirates

U Mumba were on a high with 2 consecutive wins in Pro Kabaddi League 2015 and were looking to keep the momentum going with a win against Rakesh Kumar’s Patna Pirates. With the captain and vice-captain of the Indian national team, respectively – Rakesh Kumar and Anup Kumar leading their sides into the match, this one was to be a stunner for sure.

Anup Kumar started raiding for the home team and returned back with 2 points. But Sandeep Narwal leveled the score with a 2 point raid of his own for Patna Pirates. U Mumba defense was also in tandem with their raiders and Jeeva Kumar along with Vishal Mane were plucking out the opponents raiders for fun. Rishank Devadiga supported his captain well earning 2 raid points leaving behind a solitary player for Patna Pirates. But, a genius move on their part to substitute that player with 19 year old raider Deepak Narwal who immediately revived 2 of his team-mates with his next raid.

Rakesh Kumar looked like a shadow of his old self with 0 raid points in the first half and it was the same in the 2^nd half. Anup Kumar, although having a few empty raids, did most of the raiding and slowed the game’s tempo to keep the lead with his side. The final score read 25-20 in favour of U Mumba who made it 3 wins on the trot and will look to do the same against local rivals Puneri Paltan tonight.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - Rahul Chaudhari leads Telugu Titans to a Win against Puneri Paltan

After a dominating win against Dabang Delhi in their first match, Telegu Titans looked set for another comfortable victory over Pro Kabaddi League season 1 last place finishers Puneri Paltan. But this was not the case as the Titans got more than a tough match as they trailed 13-14 against the Puneri Paltan in the 1^st half.

This fight was only limited to the 1^st half as the Titans’ skipper Rahul Chaudhari brought around a great revival for his side with his super raids and smart tackles earning his team a total of 14 points. He also inflicted 2 all-outs on the Puneri Paltans and was aptly supported by the 20 year old Deepak Hudda in attack. Wazir Singh, captain of the Puneri Paltan, was the lone fighter for his side earning 7 raid points but they were not even close to enough as Telegu Titans won as the score read 45-24.

Having read an interview of Paltan’s coach Ashok Shinde, an Arjuna awardee and multiple gold medal winner for India, he appeared to be mildly optimistic about his team’s chances in Pro Kabaddi League 2015. Puneri Paltan have also increased their squad size from 15 to 25 members with the inclusion of experienced players. It will be very heartening to see Puneri Paltan improve vastly on their Pro Kabaddi League season 1 performance.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - Anup Kumar & Shabeer Bapu star in U Mumba's win against Bengaluru Bulls

U Mumba was welcomed by the home crowd with a massive roar on day 2 of Pro Kabaddi League 2015. Both the star raiders, Anup Kumar and Ajay Tahkur were caught by successful tackles from the opponent’s defense. But it was the local lad Rishank Devadiga to the rescue earning 2 points from his raid. U Mumba seemed to take off with the match but Rajesh Mondal pulled it back for Bengaluru Bulls with a 3 point super raid. Shabeer Bapu was in form earning points from raids and tackles for his side. Anup Kumar who looked off-colour in the beginning went in for the raid and inflicted an all-out on the Bengaluru Bulls. U Mumba went into the break with a 7 point lead with the scores reading 19-12 in their favour.

The local boy Rishank Devadiga seemed to be in form churning out points in his raids. Jeeva Kumar was also making successful tackles in U Mumba’s defense. But the night belonged to the star performers from U Mumba, Anup Kumar and Shabeer Bapu. The 2^nd half was completely dominated by U Mumba who went on to win the game as the scores read 36-23 on the final whistle. Shimokawa came for the buzzer raid and showed some acrobatics but was tackled which led to the end of the match. Another enthralling game for me, as my favourite team won its 2^nd match in a row. I certainly hope that they make it a three-peat with another win against the Patna Pirates.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - Telegu Titan's All-Round Effort gets them the Win against Dabang Delhi

Day 1 of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi was just a sample of the brilliant action that would be on display in the following days. On day 2 of Pro Kabaddi League 2015, in a north-south face-off, it was Telegu Titans taking on Dabang Delhi. Rahul Chaudhari, one of the fastest raiders, began his raid and oh what a raid it was. Kashilinga Adake, the star raider of Dabang Delhi, was his victim. One of the best performers of the night was the 18 year old defender Sandeep from Telegu Titans. The trio of raiders Rahul Chaudhari, Iranian Meraj Sheykh and Deepak Hudda helped the Telugu Titans take a lead of 18-8 in the first half.

The Iranian Meraj Sheykh did his bit in the defense as well getting 4 tackle points for his side. Dabang Delhi struggled throughout the match with and were all out again in Rahul Chaudhari’s raid. Ravinder Pal Singh was the standout player for Delhi’s defense with 7 tackle points. Telegu Titans won the game in style by 9 point margin.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - A New Look Bengal Warriors against Manjeet Chillar's Killers

A new look Bengal Warriors started the proceedings in the 2^nd match of Pro Kabaddi League 2015 with their captain Dinesh Kumar raiding. He returned empty handed and it was Bengaluru Bulls’ turn who sent in their captain, the Giant Killer, Manjeet Chillar. He too returned empty handed but was tackled successfully during his raid. Dinesh Kumar was amongst the first to make a successful raid and he caught the big man, Manjeet Chillar himself. Dinesh Kumar, captain of Bengal Warriors, led from the front with one successful raid after another. Nilesh Shindewas the main man in Bengal Warriors’ defense. Bengal Warriors started to run away with the game by building a 9 point lead. This was when Ajay Thakur put in a super raid to earn 3 points for his side and then going on to inflict an ‘All Out’ on Bengal Warriors to cut their lead back to 2 points and start Bengaluru Bulls’ comeback. Now, it was Manjeet Chillar’s turn and he caught his Bengal Warriors’ counterpart Dinesh Kumar. The half ended with Bengal Warriors having a slender lead of 1 point in the second match of Pro Kabaddi League 2015.

Bulls’ defense started to turn the screws and the Warriors’ raiders were getting caught one after another. In the 28^th minute, Ajay Thakur put in a super effort to earn his team 4 points in a single raid to make the score 27-18 in favour of the Bengaluru Bulls. With Bengal Warriors on the verge of another all out, Ajay Thakur came in but was caught by the remaining 2 defenders for a super tackle. An unsuccessful Warriors raid led to the completion of Bengaluru Bulls’ comeback with the score reading 33-25 in their favour.

Pro Kabaddi League 2015 - Rematch of Last Year's Final

Last season, it was all square between these two sides as each won a match and drawing one. Jaipur Pink Panthers won the important one and took the title that too in dominating fashion with a 35-24 victory. But, this was not the case as the closely contested match was won by U Mumba with a score of 29-28. Amitabh Bachchan started the opening night by singing the national anthem.

Anup Kumar started Pro Kabaddi League season 2 off in trademark fashion looking for a toe touch on Navneet Gautam but left empty handed. Rishank Devadiga started the scoring for U Mumba and Pro Kabaddi League 2015 with a successful raid. Anup Kumar once again came in to raid after an empty Jaipur Pink Panthers raid but was caught by his favourite bunny Navneet Gautam. After 9 minutes on the clock, U Mumba seemed to be running away with a score of 9-5 thanks to a successful 3 point Shabeer Bapu raid but Jaipur Pink Panthers reduced the gap with a super-tackle on Anup Kumar for 2 points. The first half ended with the score reading 16-15 in favour of U Mumba due to a super tackle by U Mumba defender Jeeva Kumar. Most of the 1^st half was fought on a level playing field with scores leads changing in favour of each side.

The second half started with a Surender Nada raid but turned out to be a dud. Jeeva Kumar put in another successful super tackle for 2 points on Sonu Narwal. U Mumba had to thank its defense for the win with super tackles on multiple occasions. It was Mohit Chillar on this occasion who put in a double thigh hold for 2 points. As we stepped into the last minute, Anup Kumar got a successful raid to increase the U Mumba lead to 2 points. The agile Jasvir Singh came in to raid and was looking for a successful raid of at least 2 points but was caught by Jeeva Kumar to possibly secure a U Mumba win. Anup Kumar came in for the buzzer raid, looking to take something special back but was caught by a super tackle which helped Jaipur Pink Panthers earn 2 points but eventually lose the match 29-28 to get their first win of Pro Kabaddi 2015.

Road to Pro Kabaddi 2015

Following the success of Pro Kabaddi League season 1, season 2 was announced with much fanfare via a Salman Khan ‘Mauka Mauka’ advertisement. This was rip-off of the famous ‘Mauka Mauka’ ad series made for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 where a Pakistani fan was seen supporting other cricketing nations in their quest to beat India after Pakistan’s loss to us. As the opening date grew closer, Amitabh Bachchan was roped in to sing the LePanga song for Pro Kabaddi.

To top it all, the tournament starts from where it left-off, a rematch between the top 2 sides of season 1. Jaipur Pink Panthers are the defending champions and looking to put another victory under their belt over the famed Anup Kumar and his U Mumba team. It will be exciting to see if U Mumba can repeat their opening day victory of Pro Kabaddi League season 1 in season 2 as well. I, being a Mumbaikar, personally hope that U Mumba go one step further and lift the title of Pro Kabaddi League 2015 with Anup Kumar lifting the trophy in front of the home crowd at Dome, NSCI.