The Jaipur Pink Panthers defeated the Haryana Steelers 30-27 in a thrilling Play-in 1 match that went to the very end at the Thyagaraj Indoor Stadium in Delhi on Saturday. As Nitin Kumar scored seven points, Deepanshu Khatri scored four points for the Pink Panthers, and Aryan Kumar scored a High Five, the defenders stood tall. Neeraj’s High Five was the Steelers’ biggest moment.
Both teams had a wild start as they exchanged early blows inside the opening ten minutes. After gaining Neeraj, Nitin Kumar launched the Pink Panthers’ attack, but Shivam Patare quickly retaliated by dismissing Deepanshu Khatri. The defenders were just as skilled in the early going as the raiders.
After Reza Mirbagheri tackled Vinay, Mohit pulled down Shivam, and Neeraj used an ankle hold to grab Ali Samadi by himself. Despite this, the Pink Panthers’ defenders regularly scored, giving them a tiny lead. After Ali Samadi’s successful do-or-die raid on Rahul Sethpal and Deepanshu’s retaliation against Shivam, the first quarter finished with a score of 9-5.
In the second quarter, Nitin Kumar of the Pink Panthers spearheaded the pressure on the reigning champions. He started out with a two-point assault on the Steelers that left only Jaideep on the mat after Ashish Narwal and Neeraj were benched. Mohit then tackled the captain, giving the Steelers their first ALL OUT of the game.
After that, the lead grew to six points. Vinay of the Steelers added a bonus point to the total, but the Pink Panthers maintained their lead the entire time. Jaideep was captured by another successful raid by Ali Samadi, and Deepanshu once again took on Shivam. The two-time champs now lead 18–10 after Aryan Kumar tackled Vinay once again.
The Steelers put up a lot of effort to get back into the game. The reigning champions cut the margin to six points after Neeraj tackled Parvinder and Shivam scored Mohit in a spectacular raid. However, the Pink Panthers had a counterattack for every play.
After Nitin Kumar removed Sahil Narwal from the mat, Deepanshu made another move on Shivam to earn his fourth tackle point of the evening. Reza Mirbagheri gave Vinay a point, however he had to leave the mat after entering the lobby. With the score at 22-16 at the end of the third quarter, Jaideep’s do-or-die tackle on Ali Samadi kept his team in the game.
The Pink Panthers continued to put pressure on the reigning champs after the Strategic Time Out. Ali Samadi was taken out by Shivam Patare, but Vinay was tackled once again. In PKL 12, the Steelers were six points from elimination with four minutes remaining. Ashish Narwal joined the battle at this point.
He received two raid points in a row, first from Mohit and then from Aryan. Only Nitin Rawal, the captain of the Pink Panthers, was on the mat when Shivam touched Deepanshu and Neeraj touched Sahil. Ashish Narwal eventually removed him, giving the Pink Panthers the ALL OUT and even the score.
With two minutes remaining, Ashish Narwal’s mistake handed Nitin Kumar another touch point, giving the Pink Panthers the lead again. The two-time PKL champions had an advantage because the Steelers had also lost Sahil Narwal due to a yellow card. The defending champions were removed from the tournament following a three-point deficit, and Aryan’s tackle on Vinay, which also finished his High Five, essentially sealed the victory for the Pink Panthers.
