Top 3 thrillers of Patna Pirates vs Dabang Delhi K.C. in PKL history

Patna Pirates and Dabang Delhi K.C. are among the PKL teams known for giving young talents opportunities. In recent seasons, we have seen that they believe in retaining the team's core with the top-performing players and strengthening their team. The distance between the two cities may be around 950 kilometers, but when it comes to the action on the mat, there isn't much separating the two sides. Both have played 20 games against each other, with each team winning nine matches and two matches ending in ties.

In this article, let's take a look at the closely fought contests between these two terrific sides.

Season 10, Eliminator 1:

Patna Pirates and Dabang Delhi K.C. were among the most decorated sides of the tournament. In the league stages, Dabang Delhi K.C. won 13 out of their 22 matches, while Patna Pirates managed to secure 11 wins and booked a spot in Playoffs, Eliminator 1.

Both teams started the proceedings on a cautious note in this do-or-die encounter. The three-time champions, Patna Pirates, had a slender lead of three points in the initial 10 minutes. The Pirates extended their lead to 12-5 with the first All-Out of the clash, courtesy of a magnificent raid from their star raider, Sachin, when the Super Tackle was on. He continued to excel in tough situations and kept the scoreboard moving for the Pirates. However, Dabang Delhi K.C. were trailing by some margin as their leader of the pack, Ashu Malik, managed to keep things in check. Before the first half ended, Ashu Malik’s four-point raid cut down the deficit to only one point. His side inflicted an All-Out, followed by a Super Tackle, to take a slim lead against the Pirates. Ashu Malik continued his sublime form with 12 raid points in the first half, while Sachin and Sudhakar M. were fighting hard for the Pirates.

In the second half, both teams found it difficult to convert their tackles into successful ones. The two teams were going neck and neck with less than 10 minutes left in the contest. The young Pirate, Sandeep Kumar, who was playing his first season, was brought in as a replacement and chipped in with crucial raid points to help his side take the lead. The Pirates’ lead didn’t last long as the two-man defence of Ashu Malik and Manjeet produced a Super Tackle for Delhi. The Pirates held their nerve and completed an All-Out with less than a minute left in the game to get back in the leading position and maintained their lead in the last three raids to clinch the nail-biter with a 37-35 scoreline.

Season 8, Final:

Patna and Delhi were the top contenders to lift the trophy in PKL Season 8. The three-time champions, Patna Pirates, finished at the top spot of the points table with 86 points, whereas Dabang Delhi K.C., who were looking for their maiden PKL title, ended in the second spot with 75 points.

With the form both teams were in, they richly deserved to make it to the final. The clash started on a slow note as the teams were looking to handle the pressure of this high-voltage encounter. The intensity rose with each passing raid, and in the first 10 minutes, the game was evenly poised. However, immediately after, the Pirates pushed themselves and inflicted an All-Out to lead the grand finale. Naveen Kumar didn’t give up and stood tall for Dabang Delhi K.C., managing to cut down the deficit to just two points with the scoreboard reading 17-15 in favour of Patna Pirates.

In the second half, the Pirates aimed to extend their lead, and in this effort, their star raider Sachin not only contributed with his raids but also chipped in with a remarkable tackle point against Naveen Kumar. Dabang Delhi K.C. raiders were looking for multipoint raids, and they succeeded in the process when Vijay Malik produced a Super Raid to make his side trail by only a point with 10 minutes remaining. Dabang Delhi K.C. peeled layer after layer and secured an all-important All-Out to take the lead with more than six minutes left. Soon after, Vijay Malik held his nerve and produced a Super Raid to take his side’s lead to five points in the dying moments. Patna Pirates looked to bounce back, but it proved to be too little too late as Dabang Delhi K.C. clinched their first-ever PKL title by a 37-36 scoreline.

Season 1, Match 26:

When it all started in Season 1, there was not much information available about the strengths and weaknesses of the teams and the players, except for a few players who had performed exceedingly well at the national and international levels. The reverse fixture of Patna Pirates and Dabang Delhi K.C. in Season 1, Match 26, proved to be a thriller.

Dabang Delhi K.C.’s defence started confidently and made Patna Pirates’ raiders sweat to earn points. They had total control of the game in the first 10 minutes. Rakesh Kumar, the Pirates skipper, fell prey to Delhi’s strong defence during his first raid. With this, Jasmer Singh’s Dabang Delhi K.C. inflicted the first All-Out to take a 14-5 lead against the Pirates. Surjeet Narwal was the standout raider, leading the charge for Dabang Delhi K.C. and contributing eight raid points out of the 16 the team scored in the first half. At the halfway mark, Patna Pirates were trailing 11-21.

Rakesh Kumar, who couldn’t earn a single raid point in the first half, made a magnificent comeback in the second half, well-assisted by Ravi Dalal. On the other hand, Kashiling Adake kept adding points to Dabang Delhi K.C.’s tally. Patna Pirates’ defence gained confidence by observing their raiders bringing them back into the game. The visitors, Dabang Delhi K.C., succumbed to pressure and conceded an All-Out, cutting their lead to just one point. With two minutes left on the clock, Dabang Delhi K.C. had a three-point lead but failed to add any more points while Patna Pirates added points against the run of play. In the penultimate raid of the game, Rakesh Kumar produced a bonus to level the score at 30-30, marking the third tied match in the history of the Pro Kabaddi League.

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