Maninder and the Bengal Warriors’ mighty second half leads them to comfortable win over Jaipur Pink Panthers

A sensational second-half display from the Bengal Warriors, which saw them outscore the Jaipur Pink Panthers by 16 points, helped them secure a 41-22 victory. Maninder Singh recorded his 11th Super 10 of the season and became only the fourth player in vivo Pro Kabaddi history to cross the 900-raid point mark.

The first half was evenly contested, with neither team allowing the other to build a sizeable lead. The Warriors were off to a decent start and threatened to pull away on the scoreboard but were pegged back by a sensational raid from Arjun Deshwal, which put the Pink Panthers in the ascendancy.

Sandeep Dhull and Arjun Deshwal combined to reduce the Warriors to just three defenders on the mat, but Anand V and Abozar Mighani helped their side conjure a strong response and bring parity to the scoreline.

After sharing the next six-point equally, Maninder pulled off a sensational raid that saw him earn two touch points and complete 900 raid points in vivo PKL. Veteran Vishal Mane made his presence known with a trademark Dash, which pushed the Warriors’ lead to three at the end of the first half.

In his first raid attempt of the second half, Maninder tagged the remaining two Jaipur Pink Panthers players on the mat en route to the midline, to help the Warriors inflict an All Out and take a six-point lead. The skipper then delivered a Super Raid before Mane, and Ran Singh combined to send Deshwal to the bench as the Warriors closed in on another All Out.

Maninder continued to be impossible for the Pink Panthers to contain. The raider first sent Pavan TR to the bench and then took care of the remaining two players in his subsequent raid to inflict an All Out on the Pink Panthers and give the Warriors a 27-14 lead.

The Warriors’ defence feasted on the Pink Panthers’ raiding unit post the All Out, with Mohammad Nabibakhsh, Ran Singh and Mane all adding to points their tally to help the Warriors extend their lead to 16. Nabibakhsh then picked up a touch point and Ran Singh added another tackle point to his tally as the Pink Panthers were reduced to just two players on the mat.

Nabibakhsh took over the mantle from his skipper and tagged both defenders before wrestling his way past the midline to inflict a third All Out on Jaipur and help Bengal take a 39-18 lead. With the game in the bag, the Warriors cooled off, which allowed the Pink Panthers to finish the game with a 4-2 run. But it was relatively inconsequential, as the Warriors secured a massive win.

Top Performers

Bengal Warriors

Best Raider – Maninder Singh (13 Raid Points)

Best Defender – Ran Singh (4 Tackle Points)

Jaipur Pink Panthers

Best Raider – Arjun Deshwal (10 Raid Points)

Best Defender – Sandeep Dhull (2 Tackle Points)