How long will Patna Pirates' impressive run in Pro Kabaddi League 2016 continue? That remains the biggest question this season as the table-toppers get set for their ninth game of the league on Wednesday.
With seven wins and a draw from eight matches, the Patna Pirates are stamping their authority in the third season of Pro Kabaddi. They take on last year's finalists Bengaluru Bulls on Wendesday at the Patliputra Sports Complex in Patna.
Patna Pirates beat Bengaluru Bulls by nine points the last time the sides faced each other this season back in Bengaluru. On Wednesday, a similar result can be expected in their second leg game.
The hosts look the clear favourites on paper and the likes of Rohit Kumar, Manpreet Singh, Deepak Narwal and Pardeep Narwal have been pretty impressive for the Pirates this time around. Rohit and Pardeep gave bright performances for Patna against the Bengal Warriors on Tuesday to get their seventh win of the season.
Bengaluru Bulls will really have their work cut out against the Patna Pirates. The Surjeet Narwal-led side have just bagged two wins this season and they haven't won their last three fixtures. The morale of the team will be low, but a win over the leaders might just be what the Bengaluru Bulls require as they eye a position in the playoffs.
The Bulls have secured a position in the top four over the last seasons and it will come as a bit demoralising for them if they do not make it to the playoffs this time around.
The biggest win so far for Bengaluru Bulls this season has been a ten-point margin victory over the Jaipur Pink Panthers. Ashish Sangwan, Pawan Kumar and Amit Rathi were the bright performers for the Bulls in that win.
And Bengaluru Bulls know that they have to produce a similar performance against the Patna Pirates to get a favourable result for themselves.
Squads: Patna Pirates – Manpreet Singh (C), Sandeep Narwal, Abhinandan Kumar, Bhabesh Kumar, Deepak Narwal, Gurvinder Singh, G Singh, M Narwal, Rajesh Mondal, Sunil Jaipal, Vijay Malik, Suresh Kumar, Manish, Amit Hooda, Ram Sah, Vinod Kumar, Nasir Ali, Sandeep, Sunil Kumar, Hadi Oshtorak, Tae Deok Eom.
Bengaluru Bulls – Surjeet Narwal (C), Amit Rathi, Deepak Dahiya, Sinotharan, Vaibhav Kale, Vinoth Kumar, Ashish S, Ketut Ariana, Vijender Singh, Satish Kumar, R Pandu, Michal Spiczko, Deepak Kumar, Parmod Narwal, Preetam Chhillar, Shashank Wankhede, Shrikant Tewthia.
Where to Watch Live:
The match between Patna Pirates and Bengaluru Bulls will begin at 8 p.m. IST (2:30 p.m. GMT) on Wednesday, Feb. 17.
Pro Kabaddi League 2016: Patna Pirates vs Bengaluru Bulls can be caught LIVE on the Star Sports Network.
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
UK viewers can catch the action on Life OK
Live streaming will be available on Hotstar and Starsports.com
