Kabaddi

Sachin (8 points), Rohit Gulia (9 points) and all-rounder Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh (5 points) were the star performers for Patna Pirates in their victory. In the opening stages, both teams matched each other point-for-point, almost every raid resulting in high-octane action. The difference was in the variety. While the Pirates' points came through the combination of Rohit Gulia and Sachin, the Pink Panthers were reliant solely on the raids of Arjun Deshwal, who scored almost all their raid points in the half.

The Paltans made an explosive start with Mohit Goyat starting off with a Super Raid. A close review by the Paltans also worked out in their favour, as they had the momentum in their corner, playing at home for the first time this season. Midway through the first half, the Paltans were in control and had a slender 1-point lead, with both sides being watchful in their approach. Cheered on by the home support, the Paltans raged on as Fazel Atrachali and co tackled emphatically, giving themselves a 3-point lead at 13-10 in the end of the first half.

Raider Pardeep Narwal also chipped in with six points and with that became the first player to score to cross 1400 raid points in the history of the Pro Kabaddi League. The game kicked off with the Thalaivas taking out U.P. Yoddhas' two lead raiders, Pardeep Narwal and Surender Gill in their first two raids. Within minutes though the Yoddhas had recomposed themselves and clawed back to take the lead.

Going into the last minute of the match, the Pirates held a comfortable lead, but the Bulls inflicted an All Out and tackled Rohit Gulia to tie the match at 31-31. Sachin effected a few raids as the Patna Pirates took the lead at 6-4 in the 9th minute. Manish tackled Vikash Kandola to help the Pirates widen their lead further. The side from Patna inflicted an All Out in the 11th minute to take a massive lead at 12-5. Bharat pulled off a fantastic multi-point raid in the 14th minute, but the Pirates continued to dominate the match at 16-7.

The Giants, who have now won two matches in a row, triumphed with the score reading 42-38. The Steelers had the better start on the night, with the raiders and the defensive unit working in tandem, especially with Amirhossein Bastami causing some serious problems early on. However, the Giants edged ahead through Rakesh's raids before Jaideep and Mohit brought the Steelers back into the match.

While Atrachali excelled in defense, raider Aslam Inamdar starred in attack, scoring five points. Maninder Singh effected a few raids as the Bengal Warriors took the lead at 6-5 in the 6th minute. However, Fazel Atrachali tackled Maninder soon after and levelled the scores at 6-6.

Speaking about the reasons behind their success, Dabang Delhi KC head coach Krishan Hooda said, "The captain is carrying out all his responsibilities. The captain's job is to see that the combinations work on the mat, because the coach is sitting on the sidelines. The entire team is supporting him and Naveen is supporting his team members."

Billed as a clash between UP Yoddhas' record-breaking raider Pardeep Narwal and Delhi's young phenomenon Naveen Kumar, the action did not disappoint. It was the Yoddhas' defence, who, in the early stages, looked impenetrable and had Delhi on the ropes. They initiated the first ALL OUT of the game with just seven minutes gone to take a commanding 11-4 lead.

Delhi and Gujarat were both cautious to start with, and neither team was able to attain a big lead. While Rakesh H.S was running the show for the Giants, captain Naveen Kumar was looking to drive his side on. The defenders were making quite a match of this as the raiders found it tough to pick up the points. The second part of the first half though saw Naveen rake up a few quick points for Delhi, who got their noses ahead. Soon after, the Delhi defence inflicted an ALL-OUT on the Giants.

Dabang Delhi KC earned momentum as Naveen Kumar pulled off a flurry of fantastic raids. He was backed up brilliantly by defenders Vishal and Sandeep Dhull as Delhi inflicted an ALL OUT to take a massive lead at 11-2 in the 9th minute. Naveen continued to step on the pedal to help Delhi widen the lead at 14-5. The Dabang Delhi KC defense unit led by Krishan kept tackling the U Mumba raiders as Delhi led 19-10 at half-time.