Star Sports Pro Kabaddi: What to expect from the Kolkata leg
After a sensational first leg at the NSCI in Mumbai, the Star Sports Pro Kabaddi caravan moves to the capital of West Bengal – Kolkata. The second leg will witness 7 matches, just like the first, with home side, Bengal Warriors playing 4 matches – 1 on each day the tournament will be played in the city.
Starting on 22nd July, the League will be played in Kolkata till the 25th, after which it will move to Jaipur. Former Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly will lend his voice for the national anthem to signal the start of the second leg.
The first match will be played between Bengal Warriors and last season’s defending champions, Jaipur Pink Panthers. Both teams lost their opening matches this season and would be looking to give their campaign a boost with a win. Last season the Panthers got the better of the Warriors on both occasions the two faced each other – by 16 points in Patna and by 8 at Vizag. Last season’s semi-finalists, Bengaluru Bulls and Patna Pirates face off in the second match of the day. The Bulls won their opening encounter this season, but lost the second match. Patna, on the other hand, tasted defeat against U Mumba in the only match they played this season.
The second day of the leg will witness a high-profile clash with Rahul Chaudhari-led Telugu Titans facing the home side. The Warriors hold a 1-0 head-to-head record advantage over the Titans, emerging victorious by 5 points on the only occasion the two faced each other last season.
Dabang Delhi and Puneri Paltan open the third day’s action. Both the teams had failed to make the semis last season, while they have failed to get going this campaign either. The Dinesh Kumar-led Bengal team face pace-setters U Mumba in the second match of the day. U Mumba have won all their 4 matches this season and have been impenetrable so far.
Manjeet Chhillar’s Bengaluru Bulls take on Puneri Paltan on July 25th. The two teams had a sizzling rivalry in the first season as both their matches were extremely close affairs. The Bulls emerged victorious in the third match of the tournament in 2014 by just 3 points, while a packed Thyagaraj Sports Complex in Delhi witnessed the Paltans take revenge with a narrow 33-31 win. The final match of the leg will see the home side take on the Dabangs. Both the teams have beaten each other once and the home crowd would want to see their team edge ahead in the head-to-head record.
With the Mumbai crowd helping the home side to 4 back-to-back wins, the onus is now on Kolkata fans to help their team climb up the ladder.