Patna Pirates made a stunning comeback to play out a 32-32 draw against Puneri Paltan in the Pro Kabaddi League match here on Saturday.
Puneri Paltan skipper Aslam Inamdar (13 points), Patna Pirates captain Sachin (nine raid points) and Mayur Kadam (five tackle points) were the key performers of the match.
Patna Pirates came into the game following a win over Bengal Warriors, but were unable to ride the momentum in the early stages of the game and were at the receiving end of the first all out.
Puneri Paltan’s three-man raiding unit of Inamdar, Mohit Goyat and Pankaj Mohite chipped away at the home team’s defence and a tackle from Gaurav Khatri on Manjeet in the 10th minute had the men in orange taking an 11-6 lead.
Patna Pirates regrouped well and their raiders, led by captain Sachin, targeted Puneri Paltan’s cover defenders to reduce the deficit. At the halfway mark, the visiting team led 19-14.
The home side got off to a strong start in the second half and a multi-point raid from Sachin had the opposition down to three men, but Puneri Paltan defended well to keep the all out at bay.
However, a mistake from Sanket Sawant saw Pune down to three men once again as Patna Pirates sniffed a comeback. With 10 minutes left, they trailed Puneri Paltan by just three points at 23-20.
That was when Sachin produced a fine effort to go past all three defenders and inflict the all out. His effort put Patna in the lead for the first time.
With nine minutes to go, Patna Pirates led 25-24.
The two teams were locked at 27 points before the Pirates upped the ante and went ahead at 30-27 with about four minutes remaining.
Kadam brought up a second consecutive High 5 with a tackle on Mohite, but Paltan mounted a comeback in the dying stages as Patna Pirates led 32-31 with just the final raid left.
However, Manjeet fell short of the bonus line and was tackled, with both teams sharing the points.
