Pro Kabaddi League 2017 Season 5: How the Patna Pirates stopped Rahul Chaudhari from creating history

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Rahul Chaudhari's 500th point played villain to the team's cause against Patna

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The Telugu Titans vs Patna Pirates match had a lot of anticipation shrouded around it. Rahul Chaudhari was only eight points short of scripting Pro Kabaddi history as the first player to score 500 raid points and for a man who had an average of 8.48 raid points from each match, it seemed like a simple task.

However, sports teach you how to be a team person rather than go after individual records. When the final whistle was blown at the completion of the match, the Patna squad was jumping up and down on its feet for two reasons.

One, they had notched up their first win of the tournament, that too against the home team. Secondly, they had managed to keep Rahul Chaudhari at bay and denied him a piece of history which was a massive achievement, given the raider's prowess.

A decent first half

Rahul Chaudhari strode in for the first Titans raid and did not look in haste. The Titans skipper was happy to return with an empty raid but soon enough found his bearings with two raids which got him four points in total.

With 15 minutes left in the game, all Rahul needed was four more points to create history. He had found form early and was on his own path to glory. However, what unfolded in the second half was shocking, to say the least.

Second half shocker for Rahul

The second half started rather poorly for the star raider. Going in twice with just three defenders on the mat, Rahul was brought down on both occasions giving away two super tackles and the urgency was quite visible. He was distraught and filled with disbelief.

An early review for a bonus point was also turned down, making matters worse for him. With 12 minutes left on the clock, all the Titans skipper needed was the solitary point.

That one point went missing and could be discussed as one of the most disappointing moments in Rahul's career.

After three agonising minutes on the bench, Nilesh Salunke's successful raid brought Rahul back on the mat and he immediately went in with a chance for a super tackle. Greed for the one point took over and he was pinned down for the umpteenth time.

While Rahul was trying to go behind individual records, the lead was creeping up on the Titans. With a five-point deficit and less than two minutes on the clock, Rahul's desire for the point meant he went in for raiding yet again and once he was brought down for the last time in the match, the cameras turned towards the Titans coach, who just shook his head in disgust.

The final whistle was blown and Rahul was left stranded on 499 raid points but more importantly, he had let his team down and Patna had defied the skipper from creating history.

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