The Jaipur Pink Panthers defeated the three-time champion Patna Pirates by a slim margin of 39-36 on Tuesday in a fierce match at the Vishwanadh Sports Club in Vizag.
Ali Samadi Choubtarash got 8 points for the Jaipur Pink Panthers in his PKL debut, while Nitin Kumar Dhankar stole the show with 13 raid points. For the Patna Pirates, Maninder Singh and Sudharkar Maruthamuthu scored 15 and 9 raid points, respectively.
Before Ronak Singh’s tackle in response, Maninder Singh opened the score. Sudhakar M’s two-point raid maintained the Patna Pirates on equal footing after the Jaipur Pink Panthers controlled the first several exchanges.
With Nitin Kumar Dhankar having an impact on the offensive end, the Jaipur Pink Panthers began to gain ground. On defense, players like Nitin Rawal, Ronak Singh, and Reza Mirbagheri also made contributions, giving the team a two-point advantage with the score at 10-8 after ten minutes.
Reza Mirbagheri’s tackle helped the two-time winners give the Patna Pirates an ALL OUT, which quickly increased their lead to 5 points.
With assistance from Maninder Singh, Ayan Lohchab secured his first point after 14 minutes, ensuring that the Patna Pirates demonstrated tenacity at the conclusion of the first half. The Jaipur Pink Panthers had a well-earned 21-16 advantage at the break for all of their hard effort.
Nitin Kumar’s Super 10 finish allowed the Jaipur Pink Panthers to continue where they left off in the second half. On the offensive, he was unstoppable, and his dismissal came only after his seventeenth raid attempt. But with Ayan Lohchab and Sudhakar supporting Maninder Singh as he recorded his Super 10, the Patna Pirates were still within striking distance.
With less than ten minutes left in the game, the two-time champions maintained a six-point lead thanks to Ali Samadi’s offensive prowess and lightning speed. With a two-point raid, Maninder Singh reduced the margin to four points, keeping the game close.
With Maninder Singh, Ayan Lohchab, and Sudhakar as their troika, the Patna Pirates battled until the very end. But Nitin Kumar and Ali Samadi made sure that the Jaipur Pink Panthers won a close game in the end, 39–36.
