Bengaluru Bulls Vs Haryana Steelers 21 November 2024

FULL TIME 40' Bengaluru Bulls 26-32 Haryana Steelers

Haryana Steelers are back to winning ways and they are back to the top of the points table! Telugu Titans enjoyed the top spot for an hour or so but the Steelers are back to where they belong with their ninth win of the season in 12 games.

A comfortable victory for the table-toppers who have brushed aside the challenge posed by the Bulls, to be fair the challenge posed was a pretty weak one and it was an easy day out for the Steelers and yet another disappointing one for the Bulls who remain rooted to the bottom of the points table.

Vinay was prolific again for the Steelers, he picked up another Super-10 in his effort of 12 raid points which included 7 bonus points. Those bonus points were offered on a platter to him by a toothless Bulls defense and he kept chipping away at them.

The covers for the Steelers were proficient as well. Sanjay, in the right cover, picked up 4 tackle points whereas Jaideep, in the left cover, picked 3 of his own. However, skipper Jaideep was carried off the mat towards the fag end of the contest and he seemed to be in a lot of pain, there was some issue with his right foot and we will have to see how that turns out.

For the Bulls, it was the same old story all over again. Nitin Rawal carried them in defence with 4 tackle points and only got some assistance from the others when the Steelers had gone a long way ahead. 

Young Akshit was impressive with his 7 raid points but there was simply not enough support for him too. Pardeep Narwal had yet another disappointing night with just 1 point from 6 attempts, he was benched in the second half as has been the case so many times this season.

38' Bengaluru Bulls 24-31 Haryana Steelers

Jaideep is withering away in pain and he his being supported off court as he hobbles away! Some sort of an issue in his right foot and that looks problematic for the Steelers' skipper

37' Bengaluru Bulls 23-31 Haryana Steelers

Once again, both the teams look happy to be playing on the do-or-die. This time it was Steelers who got the better of those exchanges. In a rare moment when Nitin Rawal missed the ankle hold on Vinay who escaped with a slight touch and then another substitute raider Pankaj got a running hand touch on Jaideep. Steelers are almost there, you would like to believe!

35' Bengaluru Bulls 22-30 Haryana Steelers

Finally Nitin Rawal got some support in the form of a super tackle from Sunny who got the better of Vinay in a do-or-die raid. Shadloui then returned the favor with a brilliant ankle hold on Jai Bhagwan in another do-or-die

33' Bengaluru Bulls 20-29 Haryana Steelers

This game is slipping away from the Bulls! Pardeep Narwal was subbed out and his replacement Jatin picked up a bonus before falling prey to Sanjay's double thigh hold

30' Bengaluru Bulls 19-27 Haryana Steelers

Bulls are playing on the do-or-die! It was another one for them and Akshit was given the task this time, he got a touch on Shadloui to send him to the bench with an usher of his body. Vinay completed his Super-10 with yet another bonus and the young Akshit was tackled by Jaideep as he tried to run around the Steeler's defense when Jaideep went for his thighs.

10 minutes to go, 8 points the difference

28' Bengaluru Bulls 18-25 Haryana Steelers

Do-or-die raid for Steelers this time! Bulls had 4 men on court and Shivam Patare went in to raid, he tried a hand touch on the right corner deep in the corner and was dashed out by Parteek

26' Bengaluru Bulls 17-25 Haryana Steelers

Jai Bhagwan gets tackled in a do-or-die raid! Sanjay came in with a frontal block on him, he stood in his way like a wall and the rest of the defense pulled him back

25' Bengaluru Bulls 17-24 Haryana Steelers

A couple of errors from the Bulls' defense in successive raids and the lead is upto 7 for the Steelers.

23' Bengaluru Bulls 17-22 Haryana Steelers

A few empty raids to start the half and then the do-or-die raid sequence kicks in for both the teams. Bulls first and Jai Bhagwan goes in for it, tempts Shadloui with the kick and induces a foul out of him. The substitute raider falls to a strong ankle hold from Nitin Rawal and what followed was a surrender raid, just like that Bulls have inflicted an all-out, they are within 5 points now

HALF TIME 20' Bengaluru Bulls 12-21 Haryana Steelers

Haryana Steelers go into the half-time break with a 9-point lead! The half ends with do-or-die raids for either sides which the Bulls got the better off. Jai Bhagwan went in to raid for them, tried a kick on the right corner, did not get it but brushed off Jaideep who was running in from the left side and picked up a point. Then, Shivam Patare went into the do-or-die for the Steelers and Parteek got a double thigh hold on him before Saurabh Nandal provided the assist inches away from the midline to complete the half with Steelers down to 3 men.

Vinay has picked up 7 raid points out of which 6 have been bonus points while Nitin Rawal has been the best performer for the Bulls yet again with 3 tackle points.

Bulls raiders have picked up just 5 points as opposed to 12 from the Steelers while their defense has been behind their opponents as well. Can they make a comeback or will the Steelers run away with it?

17' Bengaluru Bulls 10-20 Haryana Steelers

Those empty raids led to do-or-die raids for both the teams and both the defenses stood up. Nitin Rawal got Naveen on the second attempt on an ankle hold before Jai Bhagwan fell to a huge backhold from Shadloui coming from behind.

15' Bengaluru Bulls 9-19 Haryana Steelers

A few empty raids in between a couple of points for the defense on both the sides, the pace has been a bit slow in the last few minutes as Steelers have a 10-point lead

13' Bengaluru Bulls 8-17 Haryana Steelers

Akshit gets the big man in Shadloui and then Jai Bhagwan gets Jaideep in the Bulls's next raid and Vinay meanwhile keeps picking up bonus points for fun.

11' Bengaluru Bulls 6-15 Haryana Steelers

Shadloui cleans it up and Bulls are all out! The Iranian goes in to raid and dodges his way through the two defenders and returns with a 4-pointer. Steelers are storming ahead in this one

10' Bengaluru Bulls 6-11 Haryana Steelers

A couple of empty raids before Steelers's defense picks up a point again and Bulls are down to 2 men, Saurabh Nandal and Parteek

9' Bengaluru Bulls 6-10 Haryana Steelers

Pardeep gets tackled again and Shivam Patare this time gets the better of Nitin Rawal, drags him to the mid line and the Bulls are down to 3

7' Bengaluru Bulls 6-8 Haryana Steelers

Shivam picks up his first point with a toe touch after two Haryana defenders including Shadloui stepped out of bounds plus the raider Jai Bhagwan which saw three men going to the bench

5' Bengaluru Bulls 4-6 Haryana Steelers

Pardeep Narwal continues his poor show and gets tackled once more. Nitin Rawal gets into the action with an attempted ankle hold on Vinay which was followed by a successful dash from Sunny

4' Bengaluru Bulls 3-5 Haryana Steelers

Vinay has picked up a bonus in each of his first three raids. Akshit raided for the first time for the Bulls and he was quick on his feet, he picked up a bonus but was tackled by the Steelers as his hand was inches away from the mid-line.

Shivam Patare went in for his first raid and got the big fish straightaway, he got a touch on the league's best defender Nitin Rawal. But then Bulls reviewed and managed to overturn the decision and Shivam goes to the bench as he had entered the lobby

1' Bengaluru Bulls 1-2 Haryana Steelers

Vinay puts in the first raid of the match and he gets going immediately. He picks up Sunny in the right cover with a quick running hand touch and gets a bonus too. Pardeep starts off for the Bulls as usual and he gets a bonus too

Here is a look at the all-important starting 7s of both the teams for tonight's contest:

Bengaluru Bulls: Jai Bhagwan, Pardeep Narwal (c), Parteek, Akshit, Nitin Rawal, Sunny, Saurabh Nandal
Haryana Steelers: Shivam Patare, Vinay Jaideep Dahiya (c), Rahul Setpal, Mohammadreza Shadloui, Sanjay, Naveen

Hello and good evening from Sourabh as I welcome you to Sportskeeda's continued live coverage of PKL 11. It is time for Match 68 which will see the Bengaluru Bulls take on the Haryana Steelers at the Noida Indoor Stadium.

Haryana Steelers have been dethroned from the top just a few minutes ago by the Telugu Titans who defeated Bengal Warriorz in the first match of the day, the same Telugu Titans who handed the Steelers a loss in their last match and broke their 5-match winning streak. What could have been 1 vs 12 is now 2 vs 12 but it still is a contest between two teams who have been at opposite ends in the table this season.

Steelers are at number 2 with 8 wins in 11 matches and have looked like the best team of this league. However, they endured a big 27-49 loss against the Telugu Titans in their last match and that might have just act as a reality check and keep them grounded specially having won 5 previous games on the trot. Iranian superstar Mohhamadreza Shadloui has been the main man for them and he has definitely been the showstopper that he is fondly called. With 40 tackle points to his name, Shadloui sits at number 3 on the defenders' list but what makes him so much more special is his ability in raid. He has 29 raid points to his name as well and has been the top performer for the Steelers. Vinay has been Steelers' top raider with 72 raid points in 11 matches and he has led their offence really well. Rahul Setpal has been prolific in defense as well closely following Shadloui with 36 tackle points

Bengaluru Bulls have had a shocker of a season so far. They have lost 10 out of the 12 matches they have played and are now stuck on the bottom of the points table with their season going absolutely nowhere. Their last 5 results have been losses with the latest one being a 31-54 drubbing at the hands of Patna Pirates. Their biggest superstar Pardeep Narwal has failed to deliver and just has 53 raid points to his name so far. None of their other raiders have stepped up and there has been only one man in Nitin Rawal who has been carrying the team all along. Nitin Rawal is the joint-best defender of the season so far and has 43 tackle points to his name. Apart from him, the Bulls have been found wanting on all accounts.

Mere words would make you want to believe that this might be as one-sided as a contest can get but we are never far away from surprises in PKL and specially when the league's most successful raider in Pardeep Narwal is involved. Can he do a Houdini act for the Bulls tonight or will the Steelers brush them apart and reclaim their spot at the top of the points table?