The Kolkata leg of the VIVO Pro Kabaddi League 2019 is in the history books now as the caravan of the tournament moves to Pune from tomorrow. Bengal Warriors entertained the home fans with some impressive performances. They did not lose a single match at home as Maninder Singh's men won three matches besides playing out a tie.
Among the other teams, Tamil Thalaivas and Telugu Titans suffered heart-breaking losses in their fixtures whereas three-time champions, Patna Pirates snapped their losing streak with two wins in two matches. U.P. Yoddha won their only match of the Kolkata leg and on the other hand, Bengaluru Bulls lost the only match they played.
All in all, the fans enjoyed the matches that took place at the Netaji Subash Chandra Bose Indoor Stadium but some big names failed to live up to expectations.
Here are the three star players who disappointed the fans in the Kolkata leg -
#3 Siddharth Desai - Telugu Titans
Match - 1, Raid Points - 4, Unsuccessful Raids - 6
Telugu Titans' star raider Siddharth Desai played only one match in the Kolkata leg but he failed to repeat his past performances as he could score only 4 raid points in 12 raids.
Playing against his former team U Mumba, Desai got tackled on 6 different occasions as the Mumbai-based franchise won the match with supreme ease. With the business end of the tournament approaching, Telugu Titans would hope that Siddharth returns to form.
In the upcoming Pune leg, Telugu Titans will lock horns with table-toppers Dabang Delhi K.C. and three-time champions Patna Pirates. Both the teams are in terrific form which means the Bahubali will have to pull off his best performance.
#2 Manjeet Chhillar - Tamil Thalaivas
Matches - 2, Touch Points - 0, Tackle Points - 0
Tamil Thalaivas have been in the news for all the wrong reasons this year. First, their coach resigned from his post taking the responsibility of the team's failure and next, the Chennai-based franchise became the first team to concede 50 points in a single match this season.
They played two matches in the Kolkata leg. First, they locked horns with table-toppers Dabang Delhi K.C. where Naveen Kumar's 17 raid points blew away their defensive unit. The raiders, Rahul Chaudhari and V. Ajith Kumar tried their best, but the defence could not support them.
The same story transpired when Tamil Thalaivas battled the three-time champions, Patna Pirates. Pardeep Narwal and co. wreaked havoc at the Netaji Subash Chandra Bose Indoor Stadium.
The team's strongest player, Manjeet Chhillar failed to score a single tackle point in these two matches. His only 2 points came when he was the last man standing and he got the bonus while raiding.
#1 Parvesh Bhainswal - Gujarat Fortune Giants
Matches - 2, Tackle Points - 1, Unsuccessful Tackles - 5
Two-time runners-up Gujarat Fortune Giants have had a disappointing campaign so far in PKL 2019. Known to be a dominant team, Manpreet Singh's army has committed multiple silly errors in the final moments to lose their fixtures.
Even on the opening night of the Kolkata leg, it seemed like the Ahmedabad-based franchise would defeat the Bengal Warriors, however, Maninder Singh and co. managed to avoid a loss that night. And in the team's next match, U.P. Yoddha crushed them by 7 points.
The team's cover defender, Parvesh Bhainswal could not play to his potential as he scored only a solitary tackle point in these two games. Besides that, he committed five unsuccessful tackles to increase the pressure on the Fortune Giants.
Surely, he would expect to redeem himself when he takes to the court against Puneri Paltan tonight.