Puneri Paltan return to winning ways with enormous 38-point rout of Bengaluru Bulls to stay alive in playoff race

Match 110 of PKL 11 bore witness to a mauling by Puneri Paltan as they beat Bengaluru Bulls 56-18 - a difference of 38 points. Ending a losing streak of three matches, the home side – playing at the Badminton Hall in the Balewadi Sports Complex, Pune on Friday night’s second game – were led ably by the eight points from raiders Akash Shinde and Mohit Goyat. In defence, Gaurav Khatri and Aman completed much deserved High 5s for their team.

What seemed like a see-saw clash in the opening exchanges suddenly turned in favour of Puneri Paltan, who needed just eight minutes to inflict the first All-Out of the match on Bengaluru Bulls. This gave the defending champions a strong platform to completely take the match away from their opponents.

Akash Shinde was the main aggressor for Puneri Paltan as Bengaluru Bulls had no answers to his raiding acumen. The defensive unit of Puneri Paltan were equally impressive with Mohit Goyat putting in an ankle hold to trap Jatin after Gaurav Khatri and Pankaj Mohite combined to tackle Pardeep Narwal.

With Nitin Rawal relegated to the bench, Bengaluru Bulls' defence looked toothless. Pankaj Mohite got an easy touch on Parteek, leaving just Lucky Kumar on the mat. He was dashed out by Mohit Goyat in the very next move, leading to another All-Out against Bengaluru Bulls. A rout was imminent as Puneri Paltan led 26-7 at the end of the first half.

Bengaluru Bulls – struggling on all fronts – were inflicted with a third All-Out after Gaurav Khatri tackled the Dubki King. Khatri then completed his High 5 with a successful tackle on Pankaj as Puneri Paltan continued their rampage.

After 25 minutes, Bengaluru Bulls succeeded in winning a super tackle after Mohit Goyat was tackled. But they were still 25 points behind the defending champions, who did not look like stopping their scoring spree in the clash.

The fourth All-Out was inflicted on Bengaluru Bulls as Puneri Paltan continued to run away with the victory. Aman joined Gaurav Khatri in the High 5 list for Puneri Paltan with Bengaluru Bulls not finding any answers to tackle the aggression of the defending champions.

As the match came to a close, substitute Aryavardhan Navale scored a massive Super Raid of five points as he took the score difference to 38 points to ensure that the home team bounced back after three losses to remain in the race for the playoffs.

Top Performers

Puneri Paltan

Best Raider - Aryavardhan Navale (8 raid points)

Best Defender - Gaurav Khatri (6 tackle points)

Bengaluru Bulls

Best Raider - Pardeep Narwal (7 raid points)

Best Defender - Pankaj (2 tackle points)

Where to watch Pro Kabaddi Season 11 LIVE?

Catch all the LIVE action from Pro Kabaddi Season 11 on the Star Sports Network and on Disney+ hotstar.