Patna Pirates Beat U Mumba 40-31 in PKL Season 12 Play-In 2, Move to Eliminator-1
Three-time champions Patna Pirates knocked out Season 2 winners U Mumba from Pro Kabaddi League Season 12 after winning the Play-In 2 match by 40-31 at Thyagaraj Indoor Stadium on Saturday. With this victory, Patna Pirates secured their spot in Eliminator-1 where they will face Jaipur Pink Panthers, who earlier defeated defending champions Haryana Steelers in Play-In 1.
Patna Pirates Dominate U Mumba in Crucial PKL Playoff Match
The Patna Pirates vs U Mumba clash was a must-win game for both teams. Patna Pirates showed better performance in both raiding and defense to win the match comfortably. The Patna Pirates victory extended their winning streak to six matches in PKL Season 12.
In the Patna Pirates lineup, Ayan scored 14 points to lead the raiding department. His smart raiding kept U Mumba defenders under pressure throughout the match. Meanwhile, Navdeep emerged as the hero in defense with 7 tackle points for Patna Pirates. Milan Dahiya contributed 5 points while Ankit added 4 crucial points to help Patna Pirates seal the win.
U Mumba Fight Hard But Fall Short Against Patna Pirates
For U Mumba, Ajit Chouhan fought hard and scored 12 points in the raiding department. Sandeep supported him with 7 points but it was not enough to stop Patna Pirates. In defense, Parvesh Bhainswal managed 3 tackle points while Vijay contributed 2 points. However, the U Mumba defense could not match the intensity of Patna Pirates raiders.
First Half: Patna Pirates Take Control
The match started with U Mumba capturing Ayan in the very first raid. Then Sandeep got points in his raid to give U Mumba an early lead. The defense helped revive Ayan and he immediately scored points to make it 2-2. At 4-4, Milan got a multi-pointer to push the score to 6-4 in favor of Patna Pirates.
Next, Ayan took out Rinku and brought a super tackle situation for U Mumba. However, Ajit responded with a four-point raid to give U Mumba a 9-7 lead. Patna Pirates then tackled Sandeep to level the score but U Mumba took a 10-9 lead going into the break.
After the break, U Mumba caught Ayan and brought Patna Pirates into a super tackle situation. However, Patna Pirates caught Sandeep to score super tackle points and made it 11-11. At 13-12, two U Mumba defenders went out of bounds and a super tackle was on for U Mumba.
Then Patna Pirates caught Zafar and pushed U Mumba toward an all-out. Ayan completed the all-out to give Patna Pirates a 20-13 lead. After this, U Mumba scored two consecutive points to change the momentum at 15-20.
Second Half: Patna Pirates Maintain Dominance
Ayan sat out for 10 minutes but the Patna Pirates defense revived him. As soon as he returned, Ayan scored two consecutive points to extend the lead to 6 points. However, Ajit’s multi-pointer helped U Mumba make a comeback as the score became 21-24. But Ayan caught Sandeep, who was a big target.
Then Ajit also went out and Ayan dismissed Vinay to bring a super tackle situation for U Mumba. After 30 minutes of play, the Patna Pirates lead had increased to 6 points. Following the break, Patna Pirates inflicted the second all-out on U Mumba to take a 32-22 lead.
Ayan completed his Super-10 while Navdeep achieved his High-5 for Patna Pirates. After the all-out, U Mumba scored two consecutive points to reduce the gap to 8 points. Then Ajit scored a multi-pointer to make it 26-32.
Meanwhile, Sudhakar took out Parvesh in a do-or-die raid to revive Ayan. But Ajit touched Ayan to revive Parvesh. With two minutes remaining, Patna Pirates were leading by 6 points but U Mumba brought a super tackle situation. Ajit went out and the super tackle was completed. This way, Patna Pirates won the match with a 7-point lead and knocked U Mumba out while confirming their Eliminator-1 clash with Jaipur Pink Panthers.
Jaipur Pink Panthers Win Play-In 1
In the first match of the day, Jaipur Pink Panthers defeated Haryana Steelers 30-27 in a close contest. The defending champions Haryana Steelers were knocked out of PKL Season 12. Aryan Kumar scored a High Five for Jaipur Pink Panthers while Deepanshu Khatri got four tackle points. Nitin Kumar scored seven points in raiding. For Haryana Steelers, Neeraj’s High Five was the main highlight.
Patna Pirates Journey to Playoffs
The Patna Pirates made an impressive comeback in the second half of PKL Season 12 to finish seventh in the points table. They won eight matches out of 18 games, with five victories coming in their last five matches. This late surge in form helped Patna Pirates qualify for the playoffs.
Before the Patna Pirates vs U Mumba match, Patna had defeated Jaipur Pink Panthers 33-18 in their final league match. Ayan scored 11 points and also contributed with tackles in that victory. The win confirmed Patna Pirates playoff spot in PKL Season 12.
U Mumba Season Ends
U Mumba finished sixth in the PKL 2025 points table with 10 wins from 18 matches. The Mumbai-based team could have finished in the Top 4 if they had defeated UP Yoddhas in their last league match. However, they lost that match 35-32.
In their final league game, U Mumba’s raiding unit struggled as they managed only 16 raid points. Their defense scored 14 tackle points but it was not enough to secure victory. This defeat meant U Mumba had to play the Play-In 2 match against Patna Pirates.
Ayan Lohchab Shines for Patna Pirates
Ayan has been the star performer for Patna Pirates throughout PKL Season 12. He scored 242 raid points in 18 games at an average of 13.31 points per match. His 169 successful raids showed his efficiency in converting opportunities.
In the match against U Mumba, Ayan scored 14 points which included crucial raids at important moments. His ability to score in do-or-die raids has been vital for Patna Pirates in close matches. Ayan currently ranks second in total raid points in PKL Season 12.
Defense Wins Match for Patna Pirates
While Ayan led the raiding department, it was the Patna Pirates defense that made the difference in the match. Navdeep scored 7 tackle points to earn the High-5. His tackles at crucial moments stopped U Mumba from making a comeback.
Milan Dahiya and Ankit also contributed important points for Patna Pirates. The team defense worked together to inflict two all-outs on U Mumba. This defensive strength has improved for Patna Pirates in recent matches.
Road Ahead: Eliminator-1 Against Jaipur Pink Panthers
With this win over U Mumba, Patna Pirates have set up an Eliminator-1 clash with Jaipur Pink Panthers on October 26. This will be another knockout match where the losing team will be eliminated from PKL Season 12.
Jaipur Pink Panthers won their Play-In 1 match against Haryana Steelers by 30-27. They have strong defenders like Aryan Kumar and Deepanshu Khatri who will challenge Patna Pirates raiders. Nitin Kumar will lead their raiding attack.
Patna Pirates will rely on Ayan’s raiding skills and Navdeep’s defensive work to overcome Jaipur Pink Panthers. The team has won six matches in a row and will look to continue this winning streak. Their confidence is high after the comfortable victory over U Mumba.
PKL Season 12 Playoff Format
The PKL Season 12 playoffs follow a new format this year. Teams finishing 5th to 8th play in Play-In matches on October 25. The winners of Play-In 1 and Play-In 2 meet in Eliminator-1 on October 26.
At the same time, teams finishing 3rd and 4th play a mini-qualifier. The winner of Eliminator-1 faces the loser of the mini-qualifier in Eliminator-2. This format gives more teams a chance to reach the semifinals.
Patna Pirates Playoff Experience
Patna Pirates are the most successful team in PKL history with three championship titles. They won the league in Season 3, Season 4, and Season 5. Their playoff experience will be valuable in the knockout matches.
In PKL Season 11, Patna Pirates reached the semifinals after defeating U Mumba 31-23 in Eliminator 2. Ayan Lohchab scored 10 points in that match as well. However, they lost to Dabang Delhi in the semifinals.
U Mumba Miss Semifinal Opportunity
For U Mumba, this loss ended their PKL Season 12 campaign. The Season 2 champions had a good league stage with 10 wins but could not perform in the crucial Play-In match. Their raiding unit failed to score enough points against the strong Patna Pirates defense.
Ajit Chouhan tried his best with 12 points but did not get enough support from other raiders. Sandeep scored 7 points but the team needed more contribution from supporting raiders. The defense also could not stop Ayan and other Patna Pirates raiders.
