Pune: Bengaluru Bulls took their revenge on Haryana Steelers as they won 36-33 in their reverse vivo Pro Kabaddi Season 9 game at the Shree Shivchhatrapati Sports Complex, Balewadi in Pune on Wednesday to climb to the top of the points table. Haryana Steelers took a big risk in the match, keeping in-form raider Meetu Sharma on the substitution bench in place of Vinay and the Bulls made them pay for the crucial error. Neeraj Narwal stole the show for the Bulls, earning 9 points, and setting up the win for his team.
The match started with Manjeet getting an ankle hold on the dangerous Bharat and earning Haryana Steelers a point. But Manjeet was himself caught by the Bulls captain Mahender Singh as the southern team levelled the scoreline. Moments later, Neeraj Narwal executed a Super Raid and then Aman took down Nitin Rawal to inflict an All-Out on the Steelers.
With Manjeet and Vinay unable to get raid points, the Steelers brought in Meetu Sharma. But he was caught straightaway and Bengaluru Bulls inflicted another All-Out on Haryana Steelers to get a hefty lead. Mayur Kadam also joined the party in the final minutes of the first half as he took down Lovepreet Singh and Meetu to get two tackle points as the Bulls led at 27-11 by the end of the first half.
The second half started with Meetu earning a raid plus a bonus point to give some hopes to Haryana Steelers. He earned another bonus point in his next raid as the Steelers showcased that they will not go down without a fight. Minutes later, Bharat was caught by Monu Hooda as Haryana Steelers earned another important point. An error from Vikash Kandola gave Manjeet a crucial raid point as the Steelers further reduced the gap to 19-32.
But Manjeet was caught in his next raid by Aman as Bengaluru Bulls ensured they continued to hold a firm grip on the game. With only minutes left in the game, Bengaluru Bulls started running down the clock and playing only on do-or-die raids. A herculean effort from Meetu gave the Steelers a late Super Raid as they inflicted an All-Out of their own. But in the end, it was not enough as Bengaluru Bulls managed to walk off the mat as winners.
Top Performers
Bengaluru Bulls: Best Raider – Neeraj Narwal (9 Raid Points); Best Defender – Mahender Singh (5 Tackle Points)
Haryana Steelers: Best Raider – Meetu Sharma (10 Raid Points); Best Defender – Monu Hooda (2 Tackle Points)
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