Bengaluru Bulls face Patna Pirates with an aim to close out top spot in Zone B

Patna Pirates take on Bengaluru Bulls for the final time this season at the Tau Devilal Sports Complex in Panchkula on Wednesday. A win for Bengaluru Bulls will take them 22 points clear in Zone B while a win for Patna Pirates will see them close the gap on Bengaluru Bulls to 12 points.

The two sides have split victories in their two meeting this season. While Bengaluru Bulls won the first encounter between the two sides, Patna Pirates prevailed by three points the last time these two sides played. Pardeep Narwal and Rohit Kumar starred for their respective sides with Super 10s while Jawahar Dagar managed a High 5 for Patna Pirates in that game.

Match 119 (Zone B): Patna Pirates vs Bengaluru Bulls

Head-to-head: Patna Pirates 10-3 Bengaluru Bulls. 1 tie

Form Guide:

Stats from the last five matches –

Average Points Scored – 36.4

Average Points Conceded – 34.2

Best Raider – Pardeep Narwal

Best Defender – Jaideep

Stats from the last five matches –

Average Points Scored – 36.6

Average Points Conceded – 30.7

Best Raider – Pawan Kumar Sehrawat

Best Defender – Amit Sheoran

The big battle

Pardeep Narwal vs Pawan Kumar Sehrawat

With 199 raid points in 18 games, Pardeep Narwal has been Patna Pirates’ form-man this season. Narwal is currently the league’s third-most successful raider and averages 11.06 raid points per game, to sit second on that list as well. Narwal has scored 13 Super 10s in 18 games so far, the most in the league; three of these have been his last five matches.

Up against Narwal will be Pawan Kumar Sehrawat, who leads Bengaluru Bulls’ offence. Sehrawat currently sits second in the Best Raiders list with 203 raid points in 19 games at an average of 10.68 raid points per game. Sehrawat averages a Super 10 almost every two games, having scored 10 in 19 games, 9 of which have led his side to victory. With Sehrawat averaging a mammoth 12.36 raid points in Bengaluru Bulls’ victories, the team will want him to deliver the goods once again as they look to seal the top spot in their zone.

The battle between Narwal and Sehrawat will be one to watch. The one who comes out with more raid points on the night will likely help his team walk away with five points.

Key Khiladi

Jaideep – Patna Pirates

Jaideep has led Patna Pirates’ defence brilliantly this season, having managed 56 tackle points in 19 games so far to sit eighth amongst the best defenders of the season. Among the league’s most successful Left Corners, Jaideep will have his work cut out as he goes up against an in-form Bengaluru Bulls raiding unit consisting of Pawan Kumar Sehrawat, Rohit Kumar, Harish Naik and Kashiling Adake.

Rohit Kumar – Bengaluru Bulls

Bengaluru Bulls’ skipper has come into his own after their home leg. He is their second-most successful raider with 129 raid points in 19 games. With Left Corner Jaideep in excellent form, Kumar will have to not just score points at regular intervals, but also ensure that the raiders are cycled well to keep the defender guessing.