four groups. two prior winners. The semifinals feature one making its debut. The Pro Kabaddi League is at the point of no return (PKL 9). The four teams in question are Bengaluru Bulls, Tamil Thalaivas, Puneri Paltan, and Jaipur Pink Panthers. The Panthers will play the Bengaluru Bulls in the opening match, and Puneri Paltan and Tamil Thalaivas will square off to determine the second finalist.
A little bit about the teams Bengaluru Bulls want to become the first team since Patna Pirates to win successive PKL championships, while Jaipur Pink Panthers, champions of the first PKL season, are ready to relive their glory years after an eight-year absence.
Then there is Puneri Paltan, who took the audacious decision to assemble a very youthful team with an average age of 22! Fazel Atrachali, who plays for PKL, is undoubtedly the most successful non-Indian kabaddi player in the world.
Tamil Thalaivas serves as the underdog in this semifinal, which completes the bracket. The Thalaivas lost two captains to injury—their prized acquisition Pawan Sehrawat and his backup Sagar Rathee—but have somehow continued their legendary run under coach Ashan Kumar.
If you want, you may compare them to the Leicester City of the PKL because their chances of making the playoffs were significantly lower than Leicester’s 4000-1. (of winning the Premier League).
Jaipur Pink Panthers v Bengaluru Bulls
In PKL 9, Arjun Deshwal (286 raid points) and Bharat Hooda are the two top raiders (272 raid points). Then we have Ankush Rathee (81 tackle points) and Saurabh Nandal of the Bulls, who are the second and third-best defenders in the League (68 tackle points).
Four important actors, each of whom is occupying the same position as his partner. It should be enjoyable. There is no difference between the Bulls and Panthers after 17 games of PKL play; each team has won eight games, and one game was a draw. It all basically comes down to Thursday’s semifinal because they have already defeated one another this year.
Puneri Paltan v Tamil Thalaivas
For Puneri Paltan, Aslam Inamdar, Mohit Goyat, and Akash Shinde; for Tamil Thalaivas, Narender Hoshiyar, Ajinkya Pawar, and Himanshu. Fazel should also go without saying. Always be on the lookout for him.
Puneri Paltan’s loss against Tamil Thalaivas by one point in their season-opening match was caused by a Fazel mistake of judgement. He held back on defence since he believed it to be a life-or-death raid, but it was not, and the raider returned empty-handed to give Thalaivas the victory.
Fazel had a very uncommon moment of forgetfulness and vowed to defeat the Thalaivas in their upcoming match (which was hardly three days away.) In the past, both teams have split two ties and won three times apiece. Numbers-wise, there is no advantage here.