5 best matches of the Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3

The recently-concluded third season of the Star Sports Pro KabaddiLeague witnessed some riveting action as the eight teams fought tooth and nail for a chance to lift the trophy. Some of the matches in the eight legs as well as the knock-out rounds, will remain etched in the memories of kabaddi aficionados for their quality and for the fighting spirit of the teams.Any mention of best matches, however, will remain incomplete without talking about the eventual champions Patna Pirates. They featured in some of the most exciting clashes this season and that includes the exhilarating final that they played with Season 2 winners, U Mumba.Besides Patna, there were other franchises too who put up a show for the ages. Here is a list of the five best matches of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3:

#5 Patna Pirates 67-34 Dabang Delhi (Delhi leg)

A still from Patna Pirates’ record-breaking match against Dabang Delhi

Records fell like ninepins as the-then table-toppers Patna Pirates put up a mighty show against minnows Dabang Delhi in front of a stunned Delhi crowd. The rampaging Pirates were relentless as they toyed with the bottom-placed team in a match that saw the eventual champions shatter Telugu Titans’ record of most points scored by a single team (60). The total number of points scored in this match by the two sides also created a new record, surpassing the 90 totalled by the Titans and Delhi last season.

The tournament’s MVP Rohit Kumar was once again the architect of this incredible win, notching up a massive 16 points with his array of running hand touches. He received able support from the team’s other star raider, PardeepNarwal who registered 7 points while Sandeep Narwal manned their box with supreme control, collecting eleven.Delhi were reduced to mere spectators as they watched the rampant Pirates in disbelief. Only KashilingAdake and Surjeet Singh could stand up to the challenge as they brought in a total haul of 22 points.

#4 Telugu Titans 27-25 Jaipur Pink Panthers (Pune leg)

Telugu Titans held their nerves to win against Jaipur Pink Panthers

Iranian player MerajSheykh’s all-round performance built the foundation for the Telugu Titans’ gripping win over the 2014 Star Sports Pro Kabaddi champions Jaipur Pink Panthers in the dying minutes of this Pune leg encounter. He fetched maximum points from either side that evening, scoring a staggering 11 that consisted of 7 raid points and 4 from tackles.

Last season’s semi-finalists Telugu Titans were bereft of their star raider Rahul Chaudhari as he was away with the national side at the South Asian Games. Meraj compensated brilliantly for his absence though and put the Titans ahead 12-9 at the interval.

The initial stages of the second half didn’t go in their favour as Jaipur stalled their charge through the duo of SonuNarwal and Kuldeep Singh. Just when it looked like the Titans were about to squander a golden opportunity, Prashant Kumar Rai came to the rescue and hauled them up from the brink of a loss.

In a nerve-wracking finish, he overturned the Panthers’ solitary point-lead to put up a magical super raid in the final seconds of the match. That helped the Titans end with an incredible 2-point win over the Panthers.

#3 Patna Pirates 30-30 PuneriPaltan (Pune leg)

Puneri Paltan’s skipper Manjeet Chhillar in action against Patna Pirates

Puneri Paltan were the only side this season to avoid a loss at the hands of champions Patna Pirates in the league stage in Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3. Perhaps it wasn’t very surprising as Pune’s defensive unit led by ManjeetChhillar was the perfect antidote to nullify the sharp aggression of the rampant Patna raiders.

This was visible at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex during the Pune leg. 19-year-old Pardeep Narwal was in a stupendous form that evening and amassed a whopping 14 points. He continued to make relentless inroads into the Patna box and put his team 12-4 ahead. Skipper ManjeetChhillar and Ajay Thakur managed to arrest the dominant display from the visitors and end the first half at 16-20.

Manjeet showed his attacking prowess in the second half that helped to turn around the match. He won 3 raid points besides using his robust grappling skills for 4 more points. Ajay Thakur played an equal role in the resurgence of the Paltan and contributed 7 points. Ashok Shinde’s men gradually erased the deficit and the riveting clash ended at 30-30, making itStar Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3’s first ever stalemate.

#2 . U Mumba 29-28 Bengaluru Bulls (Kolkata leg)

U Mumba staged an amazing comeback to win against Bengaluru Bulls

If there was one match which sparked off the Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 2 winners U Mumba’s revival this season, then it was this match. The-then defending champions had arrived into this tie after suffering a demoralizing 14-point defeat to Patna Pirates at Bengaluru.

They were a depleted team as many of their players had left to honour their commitment to the national side at the South Asian Games. U Mumba were staring at another loss as the 2015 Star Sports Pro Kabaddi runners-up Bengaluru Bulls completely outplayed them in the initial stages of the match. The Mumbai franchise was left reeling from Bengaluru’s onslaught and trailed 10-21 at the interval.

However, U Mumba came alive in the next half and produced a sensational comeback. RishankDevadiga raided with authority and Rakesh Kumar defended spectacularly to reduce the deficit. The result in this enthralling encounter was decided in the final minute of the match.

Trailing by 3 points, Rishank reduced the Bengaluru Bulls to just 1 man to make it a 2-point game. The Bulls captain, SurjeetNarwal, was eventually tackled in the subsequent raid as U Mumba completed the all out and held on to win by 1 point.

#1 Patna Pirates 31-28 U Mumba (the final)

A still from the grand finale between U Mumba and Patna Pirates

It was a final that lived up to the expectations. The two heavyweights – last season’s winners U Mumba and the dominant Patna Pirates put up a dazzling show that was replete with drama and some breathtaking kabaddi played by both sides.

The Pirates obliterated the bitter memories of their league loss to U Mumba with a flying start in the summit clash. Banking on Rohit Kumar’s ruthless raids, Manpreet Singh’s boys showed brilliant team effort to inflict an all-out on Mumbai in the 7th minute. From being haplessly down at 2-10, Mumbai skipper Anup Kumar somehow staged a mini-revival of sorts to finish the first half at 11-19.

The former champions started their damage control right when the match resumed. Shabeer Bappu and Anup helped the team bounce back from the early setback and went on an improbable 9-2 run that saw the intimidating Patna Pirates suffer an all out.

Tension mounted at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium as Bhaskaran Edachery’s men closed in to reduce their deficit to just 3 points. Their hard work bore fruit as U Mumba succeeded in levelling the score 28-28 in the 39th minute. However, Patna’s Deepak Narwal broke the deadlock and his team eventually scooped up three points on the trot to emerge the Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3 winners for the first time.