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The 12th and final week of the league stage of Pro Kabaddi 2019 concluded at Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex in Greater Noida as a part of UP Yoddha's home leg. The hosts managed to win three out of four matches at home ahead of the playoffs week.
UP Yoddha started their home leg with a victory over Dabang Delhi K.C. (50-33) and continued that form for a win over Puneri Paltan (43-39). They suffered a loss at the hands of Telugu Titans (36-41) but ended their campaign with a dominant win over Bengaluru Bulls (45-33).
Shrikant Jadhav emerged as the top raider from the home side with 25 raid points to his name in 4 matches. Skipper Nitesh Kumar scored 20 tackle points in the home leg as the highest-scoring defender of the 12th week.
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After 132 matches of the league stage, Dabang Delhi K.C., Bengal Warriors, UP Yoddha, U Mumba, Haryana Steelers, and Bengaluru Bulls have qualified for the playoffs this season. The knockout matches will start from 14th October and the final will be played on 19th October at EKA Arena by TransStadia, Ahmedabad.
Let's take a look at the three teams which could win the Pro Kabaddi title after the Greater Noida leg:
#3 U Mumba
U Mumba have turned into a competitive unit in the past few outings with the defense led by the corner duo of Fazel Atrachali and Sandeep Narwal. Abhishek Singh has emerged as a dependable lead raider. The likes of Arjun Deshwal, Athul MS, Dong Geon Lee, and Ajinkya Kapare have shown intent whenever given opportunities.
They faced Haryana Steelers in the single-header clash of the Greater Noida leg. Ajinkya Kapare and Dong Geon Lee contributed well with nine raid points each from the second-string offense. Fazel Atrachali scored eight tackle points while Sandeep Narwal attained five tackle points. U Mumba went on to register a comfortable victory (39-33).
U Mumba clashed with Dabang Delhi K.C. on the final day of the penultimate week of PKL 2019. The second half of that match started with an all-out on U Mumba as the scoreline read 27-13 in Dabang Delhi's favour. However, Abhishek Singh's 8th Super 10 of the season along with Arjun Deshwal's nine raid points saved the game as both teams ended on a breathtaking tie (37-37). Fazel Atrachali gained six tackle points to his name.
U Mumba will have a rematch with Haryana Steelers in Eliminator 2 on 14th October. They will be hoping to advance to the semi-finals and face Bengal Warriors if they manage to defeat Haryana Steelers yet again.
#2 UP Yoddha
The hosts of Greater Noida leg, UP Yoddha had a rough start to the season with just two wins in the first eight outings. They went on to win 11 out of the next 14 matches and solidified the third spot in the team rankings. UP Yoddha found a balanced defensive unit with Nitesh Kumar-Sumit corner duo having 142 tackle points shared between each other.
Their raiders have performed consistently with their leading raid-points scorer, Shrikant Jadhav bagging 139 raid points in 21 matches. Surender Gill, Rishank Devadiga, and Monu Goyat have contributed to the team 60-plus raid points each.
UP Yoddha managed to win three out of four matches in their home leg as they beat Dabang Delhi K.C., Puneri Paltan and Bengaluru Bulls. Their only setback was against the Telugu Titans on the fourth day of Greater Noida leg.
UP Yoddha will square off against Bengaluru Bulls in Eliminator 1 on 14th October as the winner of that match will face Dabang Delhi K.C. in the first semi-final. With such a balanced starting seven in their line-up, they look an irresistible force heading into the knockouts.
#1 Bengal Warriors
The Bengal Warriors have emerged as a proportionate team with both their offense and defense contributing equally to the side. Led by Maninder Singh in the raiding department with 205 raid points, their supporting raiders have shown intent with Sukesh Hegde and K Prapanjan contributing well. The corner duo of Baldev Singh and Rinku Narwal have 120 tackle points shared between themselves.
A second-string Bengal Warriors, captained by Baldev Singh, faced Patna Pirates. Rakesh Narwal and Sourabh Patil showcased their skills with Super 10s each. Iranian Mohammad Taghi also scored six raid points while the left corner Adarsh T bagged three tackle points. Despite a loss (41-69), Bengal Warriors fought well till the end and found dependable players heading into the playoffs.
They faced Tamil Thalaivas on Day 4 of the Greater Noida leg. Mohammad Nabibakhsh scored three raid points and four tackle points in his all-round show. Sukesh Hegde led the offense with six raid points, supported by a decent High 5 from Rinku Narwal. The Warriors defeated Tamil Thalaivas (33-29) and ended their league stage on a positive note.
Bengal Warriors will face the winners of Eliminator 2 between U Mumba and Haryana Steelers on 16th October. They are two victories away from winning their first-ever Pro Kabaddi title and are in top-notch form heading into the knockouts.
