Bengaluru Bulls didn't enjoy a great start at their home leg clash in the Pro Kabaddi League 2015 as they failed to get past U Mumba at the Shree Kanteerava Stadium, Bangalore, on Wednesday, 12 August.
The Bulls will, however, look for a favourable result in their second game at home against the Jaipur Pink Panthers on Thursday.
Although the Pink Panthers didn't look strong initially, they have been labelled as the dark horses due to their slow resurgence.
U Mumba rode on an impressive performance on the day to take home five points and move to the top of the table once again. Mohit Chhillar and Surender Nada also played their part in the defence as the duo stopped Bulls raider Ajay Thakur from making a successful raid in as many as four occasions.
The match finished 36-29 and the one point received took Bengaluru Bulls to the third position in the table, ahead of the Pink Panthers.
The presence of Bulls skipper Manjeet Chillar in the bench for as many as 18 minutes during the game can be questioned, as the raider collected five points towards the end of the game to reduce the gap between the two teams.
Chillar finished the game with seven points, while Dharmaraj Cheralathan bagged six points.
The Bulls have now recorded two defeats on the trot, but they are still trying to make it to the play-offs. Three wins is all they need now to seal the berth.
However, it seems all the more complicated now as one looks at the last three performances of Jaipur Pink Panthers. Not only have they all been a win, but the Pink Panthers also decimated their opponents by a huge margin.
Their 51-31 drubbing of Delhi has been the biggest margin win this year.
Rajesh Narwal picked up as many as 15 raid points on the day and another three defensive points, in the process, recording the best individual performance of the season.
Narwal continued his brilliant performance in the next game against the Puneri Paltan as well to help his side record a 31-18 victory in Delhi. Prashant Chavan and Ran Singh, along with Kuldeep Singh, also played their part in the game.
The match between Bengaluru Bulls and Jaipur Pink Panthers gets underway at 9 pm IST (4:30 pm BST).
Previous meeting (28 Jul, 2015): Jaipur Pink Panthers overpowered Bengaluru Bulls 36-23
Where to Watch Live:
Pro Kabaddi League: Bengaluru Bulls vs Jaipur Pink Panthers, 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
