PKL: Patna Pirates extend Telugu Titans' losing streak

Hosts Telugu Titans losing streak continued as they suffered their fifth consecutive loss with a 36-43 defeat to double defending champions Patna Pirates in the fifth edition of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) here on Thursday.

Patna captain Pardeep Narwal (12 points) and Monu Gayat (10) played stellar roles in the second win on the trot for Patna Pirates over Telugu Titans in this edition at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium.

Vinod Kumar, Jaideep and Manish picked up four tackle points each as they kept a check on Telugu raiders for the better part of the match. It was only towards the end that home captain Rahul Chaudhari (12 raiding points) made some impact to cut the deficit to seven at the end.

It was otherwise another forgettable day for the hosts. Telugu, who had defeated U Mumba in the tournament opener on Friday before falling to Patna Pirates, Bengaluru Bulls, U.P Yoddha and Bengal Warriors, didn't show any improvement, especially in defence.

The home defence hardly got any control over Pardeep and Monu, who began perfectly for Patna. The eastern side then caught Rahul on his first raid to make it 3-0.

Rahul and Nilesh Salunke then got their act together to help Telugu keep pace with Patna in the first 10 minutes of their final home match.

But Patna later improved their defence while Pardeep and Goyat kept picking raiding points as they forced an all out on the hosts to lead 19-15.

Pardeep's audacity and awareness kept Patna ahead as they led 23-16 at half-time and the sturdy raider hunted like a machine. He not only got touch points at will but also accumulated bonus points at ease.

Patna stepped up the gear further, rattling points at ease. They forced another all out on Telugu in the 26th minute, holding a 32-17 lead which became 34-17 after Pardeep's scintillating jump over two rival defenders fetched him two touch points.

Afterwards, Patna dropped a gear and a desperate Telugu feasted on it - and eliminated all Patna players in the 37th minute as they trailed 30-40. But it was only a matter of time for Patna to clinch the match and they did it without much pressure.

Rakesh Kumar bagged four tackle points to ease the pressure on his position which had come to question after few pedestrian shows.

With this win, Patna took the top spot in Zone B with 10 points from two games. Telugu dropped to the second spot with eight points from six outings.

(Abhishek Purohit can be contacted at abhishek.p@ians.in).

--IANS

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