PKL-12: Patna Pirates Defeat Bengaluru Bulls in Tiebreaker
In the 88th match of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) Season 12, played at the Thyagaraj Indoor Stadium on Thursday, Patna Pirates faced Bengaluru Bulls. The game ended 32-32 in regulation time, pushing it into a tiebreaker, where Patna Pirates edged past the Bulls 6-5. This marked Patna’s fourth win in 14 matches, while the Bulls suffered their seventh loss in 15 games.
In the opening five minutes, thanks to Ayan and a solid defense, Patna took a 5-4 lead. However, Akash leveled the score and then tackled Ayan to give the Bulls a narrow lead. Just before the end of the first quarter, Patna’s defense caught Alireza, but the Bulls still led 8-7.
In the second quarter, the Bulls repeatedly pushed Patna into super tackle situations, but Manjeet and Ayan helped their team avoid them each time. At one stage, Patna took a four-point lead, but a multi-point raid by Alireza reduced the gap to two. However, in the final minute of the half, Ayan added a point to give Patna a 16-13 lead at halftime.
After the break, Patna extended their lead to four points through Ayan and then to five with a strong defensive move against Akash. Ayan completed his Super 10 with a two-point raid, pushing the Bulls to the brink of an all-out. Patna inflicted the all-out to take a 25-16 lead. After the reset, the lead stretched to 11 points before the Bulls narrowed it down to 18-28 by the 30th minute.
After the break, Alireza picked up a bonus and then dismissed Ayan, giving Patna a major setback. The Bulls started their comeback as the deficit came down to eight points. Although Patna’s defense caught Alireza, Ganesh revived him in the very next raid. The Bulls then forced Patna into a super tackle situation, and Alireza dismissed Deepak to push Patna toward an all-out — which they completed, bringing the score to 28-30.
In the final two minutes of thrilling action, the match ended 32-32, but Patna carried their momentum into the tiebreaker and once again proved their reputation as giant killers by defeating another top team.
