Ajay Kumar executed some stunning do or die raids as Jaipur beat Patna Pirates 29-22 to move six points clear at the top of the Pro Kabaddi table.
Both Jaipur and Patna came into this match on the back of crucial wins. The last time these two sides met, The Pink Panthers beat the current champions on their home turf. Shabeer Bapu shined that day with an unexpected but match winning defensive performance.
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Jasvir began proceedings taking out Fazel Atrachali with an extended hand touch inside thirty seconds. His compatriot, Rajesh Narwal took out Bajirao Hodage in a similar fashion. Patna lost two of their defensive pillars early on as the Panthers led by 3-1 after five minutes.
The Pirates came back with some strong tackles to lead 4-1. Pardeep Narwal was surprisingly deployed for the do or die raids early on. He was efficient with them. Narwal then took out Shabeer Bapu with a hand touch and Jaipur were now down to three.
But do or die specialist, Ajay Kumar was ever present to bail Jaipur out and restored six men on the mat. The score was 6-6 after fourteen minutes. Kumar was extremely confident with his raids, every time his side was under the burner. He scored a hat trick of death raids and reduced Patna to just three men.
Jasvir then received the Fazel treatment. The Iranian ploughed him to the ground with a monstrous body blow. Patna finished the half on a high. Pardeep scored a clever two-point raid and was now getting into his groove.
HT- Jaipur Pink Panthers 9 – Patna Pirates 11
The Panthers began the second half with just three men. Pardeep reduced them to two taking out Shabeer Bapu with ease. He returned and left Jaipur hanging on for dear life. But Rajesh Narwal negated his attempts with some quality raids of his own.
Pardeep returned a third time looking for an all-out. But he was super tackled. The scores were now level at 13 apiece after twenty-five minutes. Once again, Ajay Kumar pulled off a mind-boggling do or die raid. He took out two players to leave Patna now hanging on for dear life.
There was no stopping Kumar tonight. He returned and unbelievably scored another death raid to reduce Patna to two men. That was his sixth point of the night. Jasvir then did the damage inflicted the first all out of the match and gave Jaipur a 20-16 lead.
And once again, Ajay Kumar eased his way past a Patna defender in a do or die raid. The pressure seemed to have provided him an added incentive to score. The crowd were left awestruck with his efficiency and with six minutes remaining, the Panthers raced to a 22-18 lead.
Jaipur didn’t show complacency and continued to defend as a compact unit. The men in green found no way through the pink wall. Jasvir then took out Kuldeep and Patna were staring at another all out. The Pirates suffered their second, seconds later.
The Panthers now led 29-20 with a minute left and ultimately they beat the defending champions to register their eighth win of the season.
FT- Jaipur Pink Panthers 29 – Patna Pirates 22
