JOIN USBulls look to torpedo Pirates
Being touted as the potential whipping boys of the tournament, the Bengaluru Bulls sprang a surprise result as they beat a formidable Dabang Delhi in their opening fixture, and the local side will look to use home advantage to build on the momentum as the Bengaluru leg of the Pro Kabaddi League kicks-off at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium on Wednesday.
The Bulls take on Patna Pirates in their second league fixture on Wednesday, while the day’s other game will see Delhi take on a strong Puneri Paltan side.
After a technically sound performance in their first rubber, which saw them win 35-29, Bengaluru’s coach Randhir Singh said his side was brimming with confidence.
“The kabaddi pundits had written us off but we proved ourselves on the mat in the first game.
“It was an important win for us and we need to build on it. The boys are very disciplined and the mood in the camp is fantastic right now.”
“If people are going to undermine our strength then they do it at their own peril because, in my opinion, all eight teams are equal,” said the Arjuna awardee as he sounded the warning to the other teams in the competition.
While the Bengaluru leg has previously been held towards the latter stages of the tournament, it will be the second leg of the tournament this edition. Over the last two editions of the PKL, the timing of their home leg helped spur them into the top-four, so the question arised on whether the schedule could affect their performance.
“To be honest, it is a slight disadvantage because these are early stages of the tournament and nothing is confirmed. If this was the third or fourth leg it would have been great because we could have a built a good momentum going into the business end of the tournament,” noted Randhir.
Young side
Bengaluru, who have had prominent stars in the past with the likes of Manjeet Chillar, Ajay Thakur, Dharmaraj Cherlathan and Joginder Narwal, now boast of a young side led by India international Surjeet Narwal.
U Mumba coach Bhaskaran Edachery was of the opinion that even though Bengaluru has a young side, the advantages were plenty.
“Yes, they are a young side but what makes it interesting is the fact that the younger players have certain intensity and freedom with which they play. Experienced players will consider the situation at times and that could affect their intensity, but that isn’t the case with the players with less experience.”
“There were a lot of people who have come up to me and said that Bengaluru were a weak side, but I firmly believe that they will go a long way in the tournament,” added Bhaskaran.
Skipper Surjeet, along with rising star, Deepak Kumar Dahiya will be hoping to put up stelllar performances in front of their vociferous home crowd.
Matches will be held from Wednesday to Saturday and tickets for the same will be available at the box office at the venue and on get2thegames.com.
Fixtures: February 3: Bengaluru Bulls vs Patna Pirates (8pm); Dabang Delhi vs Puneri Paltan (9 pm).
February 4: Bengaluru Bulls vs Bengal Warriors (8 pm).
February 5: Dabang Delhi vs U Mumba (8 pm); Bengaluru Bulls vs Jaipur Pink Panthers (9 pm).
February 6: U Mumba vs Patna Pirates (8 pm); Bengaluru Bulls vs Telugu Titans (9 pm).