The final day of the Pro Kabaddi League season 4 had it all, including some amazing super raids, super tackles and ankle holds, which enthralled the fans seated at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium in Hyderabad on Sunday. Patna Pirates were brilliant in the men's final, defeating Abhishek Bachchan's Jaipur Pink Panthers, 37-29, thus becoming the first team to win the competition twice.
In front of a jam-packed stadium, which included famous personalities like former India cricketer VVS Laxman and Bollywood superstar, Hrithik Roshan, the action was top-class. Storm Queens won the inaugural edition of the Women's Pro Kabaddi League while Puneri Paltan finished third in the men's competition on Sunday as well.
However, the loudest cheers and applauds were reserved for the men's final, and the star players did not disappoint, producing a quality title-decider.
Rajesh Narwal earned the first super raid, helping the Pink Panthers earn three points to take 5-2 lead. But Patna came back strongly, which included a super tackle as they took 8-6 lead.
Panthers' skipper and raider, Jasvir Singh was turning it on, with some stunning raids, and brought his team back to tie the score at 16-16. However, it was Patna, who took lead in the final moments of the first half to take 19-16 lead.
If raider Pardeep Narwal was brilliant for Patna, scoring seven points, Jasvir showed his offensive class with same points for Jaipur in the first 20 minutes.
With some amazing tackles and raid, Patna were able to further increase their lead to 23-18. One has to applaud Patna's defence, which was increasingly gaining confidence. With Patna's raider Narwal looking dangerous on the offence, the Pink Panthers were finding it difficult to contain the star player. Add to it their defence, Patna were running away with the title, taking a 31-23 lead with seven minutes left on the clock.
Despite a valiant effort from Jaipur's Jasvir, his team were not able to close the gap, and had to be satisfied with a second place finish. Narwal, who accumulated 16 points, played an important role in helping Patna win back-to-back title. The final score read 37-29.
Earlier, the third and fourth place match was competitive, with Puneri Paltan emerging victorious, defeating Telugu Titans, 40-35.
In the women's competition, Storm Queen and Fire Birds were involved in a tight encounter, with the game swinging both ways. But, a splendid performance from Queens, and a late point helped the team win the inaugural edition of the Pro Kabaddi League, score reading 24-23.
Queens skipper, Tejeswini Bai and Sakshi Kumari played an important role in the win, scoring four and eight points respectively. For Birds, it was Rinju, who was the most impressive with seven raid points. However, her performance was not enough as Queens were consistent throughout the final to win the title.
After an entertaining and exciting end to Pro Kabaddi League, sport fans will be waiting for the Kabaddi World Cup, which is set to be played in October, as announced on Sunday.
