5 Talking Points from the Pune Leg of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi

Kabaddi fever gripped the city of Pune in the final leg of the first half of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi season 3. The crowd at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex witnessed possibly the most entertaining leg this season as almost all the games went down to the wire.The home team, Puneri Paltan, drew twice, before losing once and ended the leg with a win while Patna Pirates continued their march at the top of the table with a win and a draw. U Mumba were back to their best with two wins out of two while Jaipur Pink Panthers managed to throw away a win twice within the space of twenty-four hours.As the dust settles on the action in the Maratha bastion, we take a look at the 5 talking points from the Pune leg:

#1 Mixed bag for Puneri Paltan

Puneri Paltan couldn’t make the most of the home leg

Puneri Paltan were involved in four extremely tight games at home. They had the fans on the edge of their seats whenever they played and scored 12 points out of a possible 20. Starting off with two come-from-behind draws, the Paltan’s start to proceedings at home were decent, but they couldn’t pull off a win in their third match as U Mumba’s late show saw Pune go down in a thrilling encounter.

However, the damages of that defeat were repaired with a win against Bengaluru Bulls on the final day of the leg. The performance at home keeps the Puneri Paltan very much in the reckoning for the semi-finals, but with a few opportunities missed on the way, the home leg was a mixed bag for the Ashok Shinde coached outfit.

#2 Pardeep Narwal announces himself on the big stage

Patna Pirates’ Pardeep Narwal has been the rising star of this season

Patna Pirates have been in scintillating touch this season, but with Sandeep Narwal and Rohit Kumar away on national duty with India, the league leaders’ task in Pune looked slightly tough. However, Pardeep Narwal proved the saying “cometh the hour, cometh the man” true, stepping up to the plate just when his team needed him.

Bagging a staggering 25 points from Patna’s two games in Pune, Pardeep helped his side earn a draw against the home side Puneri Paltan, before romping to a huge win against Dabang Delhi. The young raider was in good nick before the Pune leg, but his performance in Pune was one that truly announced his arrival on the big stage.

#3 U Mumba\'s bench strength shines through

Bengal Warriors’ Mahesh Goud is tackled by Rakesh Kumar and Fazel Atrachali

Every team needs a good set of starters, but to win titles, you need a balanced squad that can ensure the absence of your main players does not affect the team. Playing without Anup Kumar, Surender Nada, Vishal Mane and Mohit Chhillar, U Mumba’s wins against Puneri Paltan and in-form Bengal Warriors spoke volume of the strength in depth they possess.

The Mumbai outfit finally found some consistency in Pune after a stop-start first 3 legs. Their twin success in Pune will definitely have silenced their critics and shown that they are ready to defend their title. The stars return post the Pune leg for U Mumba and with the wind very much in their sails, it will take a lot to stop them.

#4 Agony for Jaipur Pink Panthers

A still from the match between Jaipur Pink Panthers and Puneri Paltan

Patchy is the word that best describes the Jaipur Pink Panthers’ form this season and the way their two games went in the Pune leg, proves that. Facing a Puneri Paltan side getting great home support, the Pink Panthers did extremely well to silence the crowd and race into an 11-point lead at a point in the first half.

But, some sloppy play, coupled with an injury to Rajesh Narwal, led to them throwing away that lead. In the end, the team from Jaipur seemed happy to take a point from the game.

Less than 24 hours later, the Jaipur Pink Panthers found themselves with a 5-point lead to protect with less than ten minutes to play against Telugu Titans. The former champions, once again, couldn’t hold their nerves and succumbed to a defeat. From a possible 10 points on offer, the Pink Panthers were left licking their wounds after managing only four.

#5 Close matches thrill the Pune crowd

Rajesh Mondal is tackled by Jasmer Singh Gulia as the Patna Pirates were held to a draw by hosts Puneri Paltan

The Pune leg was, by far, the most dramatic one so far in Season 3 of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi. 5 out of the 7 games that were played in Pune, went right down to the wire and were alive as a contest till the buzzer raid. With hosts Puneri Paltan involved in four very close games, the Pune crowd were truly served a great treat.

The Pune crowd also found new heroes to support during the matches. A large part of the crowd which supported the Jaipur Pink Panthers against the Telugu Titans, switched loyalties after being impressed by the show put on by Iranian raider, Meraj Sheykh.

The games in Pune remain the highest point of the season so far, in terms of sheer entertainment, and leave us expecting a lot going into the Patna leg.