Bengal Warriors may have won against Puneri Paltan on Thursday, but the dream of making the playoffs this year is over for them.
Nevertheless a win is a win and going in to Friday's game against Patna Pirates at the Shree Kanteerava Stadium, Bangalore, the Warriors will be looking for five points once again.
Sunil Jaipal, who came on as a substitute for the Bengal Warriors, picked up as much as eight points in the game that included two bonus in eight raids. Although the Pune side were handed a narrow 31-28 defeat, the standings didn't change after the game.
While Puneri Paltan are still the rockbottom side, Bengal Warriors remain the second-bottom side. The gap between them has, however, increased to seven points.
Shyam Kukmar Sah remained a consistent man in the defence for the Warriors, as he prevented four successful Pune raids, and also won the Man of the Match Award for his performance on the day.
The win was much-needed for the Kolkata side as they have two games remaining in the regular league season this year. Currently, on 21 points, the Warriors need to win the next two games to showcase their ability to fight back in what had been a poor season this time, with as many as eight losses recorded.
Patna Pirates, however, are not an easy side on paper. The Pirates may be just four points above the Warriors, but their performance in the competition hasn't been bad this year.
The Patna side have played ten times so far and have recorded four wins and five losses. Their highest margin win has come against Dabang Delhi, who were overwhelmed by a scoreline of 39-22.
However, revenge was extracted soon as the Delhi side this time hammered Patna Pirates by a 19-point margin in Delhi and seemed to take away all the confidence from them.
With history of such heavy loss, it will be difficult for the Pirates; but they will be willing to start their Bangalore campaign of the season with a bang.
The Warriors also have similar intentions and that is what makes the battle between the two Eastern Indian sides so relishing today.
Skipper Rakesh Kumar and all-rounder Sandeep Narwal are expected to be key players for the Pirates on 14 August.
The match between Bengal Warriors and Patna Pirates will begin at 8 pm IST (3:30 pm BST).
Previous meeting was on 2 August, 2015: Patna Pirates 20 - 20 Bengal Warriors
Where to Watch Live:
Pro Kabaddi League: Bengal Warriors vs Patna Pirates can be caught LIVE on Star Sports.
Hindi Coverage - Star Sports 3, Star Sports HD 3, Star Gold
English Coverage - Star Sports 2, Star Sports HD 2
Telugu Coverage - Maa Movies
Kannada Coverage - Suvarna Plus
Marathi Coverage - Star Pravah (Sunday Matches only)
UK viewers can catch the action on Life OK
Live streaming will be available on Hotstar and Starsports.com
