Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], November 3 (ANI): Having trailed in the initial part of the match, the Patna Pirates came back in style, as they romped past the UP Yoddhas and won by a scoreline of 42-37, at the GMCB Indoor Stadium, in Gachibowli, in Hyderabad on Saturday.
For the Patna Pirates, the dynamic Devank was once again the star of the show with 11 points. Along with Devank, the Patna Pirates also had Ayan scoring 9 points. For the UP Yoddhas, it was Gagan Gowda who top scored with 9 points, while Hitesh registered a High 5 and Bharat bagged 6 points in the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL).
UP Yoddhas’ captain Surender Gill and Gagan Gowda got the team off to a bright start, as the raced into a 3-point lead within first few minutes of the contest and complementing them was the defensive unit, which put the UP Yoddhas in the box seat early on. 7 minutes in, Hitesh and UP Yoddhas inflicted an all out on the Patna Pirates as well. At this point, the UP Yoddhas were well and truly bossing the contest.
For the Patna Pirates, it was Devank and Ayan, who were leading the charge, yet again but, midway through the first half, it was the UP Yoddhas, who led the contest by 7 points. After that, the Patna Pirates started to mount a comeback, with Ayan taking charge in attack and the Shubham Shinde led defence supporting him brilliantly. The contest turned on its head with 5 minutes to go in the half, as the Patna Pirates inflicted an all out on the UP Yoddhas, which brought both teams to 15-15.
From then on in, the three-time champions cranked up the intensity, and ended a well contested first half with the lead. At the break, the Patna Pirates led 23-19.
The Patna Pirates started the second half brightly, and had the better of their opponents in the first few minutes. But Bharat and Hitesh ensured the UP Yoddhas would stay within touching distance of the Patna Pirates. Devank, Ayan and Shubham Shinde were pulling the strings for the Patna Pirates, who despite all the pressure, managed to hold onto the lead. For the UP Yoddhas, Surender Gill, Gagan Gowda, Hitesh and Bharat were working well in sync, which was causing their opponents some concern. At the half-hour mark, the Patna Pirates led by 3 points, but it was still anyone’s game.
The final phase of play saw Devank complete yet another Super 10, after which the Patna Pirates landed an all out on the UP Yoddhas as well. From the on in, the Patna Pirates, started to consolidate on their lead. Eventually, the Patna Pirates won the contest, and registered their third win of the season. (ANI)
