Daring Haryana Steelers defense is ready to take on the charging Bengaluru Bulls attack in Match 125 of the Pro Kabaddi League. The PKL battlefield will be set afire as two of the most destructive franchises of Season 8 are squaring off each other at Sheraton Grand Whitefield Hotel in Bengaluru.
The Haryana Steelers coach Rakesh Kumar was a scholar of Randhir Singh Sehrawat and Railways side for many years under the watch of the Bulls gaffer. The Steelers roster also consists of veteran Surender Nada who is quite acquainted with Sehrawat’s tactics, having played under him in the fourth PKL edition. Although the left-corner defender did not have a great campaign in the solitary season at the Bulls and could score only 33 tackle points from 13 games.
Haryana underwent a 14-point thrashing from the hands of the Bulls the last time these two franchises shared the battlefield. Where storm of Pawan (20 raid points and 2 tackle points) crushed the Steelers’ hopes to fetch match-points against the sixth edition champions. The Dhakad Boys matched the raiding standards of the Bulls but defensive performance proved to be decisive as the red side’s tackle points tally was double than the counterparts.
The last two powered substitute appearances of left-corner Jaideep Sharma will strengthen his contention for the Starting 7 ahead of the youngster Aman Antil. Raider Chandran Ranjit is also expected to make a comeback to the lineup after being the highest scorer from the Bulls camp against Pirates. Although we may not see any changes in the Haryana lineup as coach Rakesh would like to retain the winning combination.
How have they done so far?
This will be the last game of the group stage campaign for Bengaluru while Haryana has one more left in the campaign. Hence the Karnataka-based franchise is in the Do-or-Die situation as they will have to depend on other teams for their qualification if they fail to claim five match-points against Steelers.
On the other hand, Haryana is currently standing in the fourth position in the points table with 63 points from 20 games of the eighth edition. The Dhakad Boys from the land of Kabaddi must be looking forward to clinching maximum points from this fixture to move closer to a consecutive playoff finish at the PKL.
Head to Head record
A short history of the head-to-head rivalry between Bengaluru and Haryana is currently led by the Karnataka-based franchise. The Bulls have three wins in the head-to-head count while their counterparts are standing on two.
Key Players
Will the Haryana Steelers defense be able to calm down the storm of Pawan Sehrawat?
Pawan Kumar Sehrawat: Haryana has to be his favorite opponent as the Powerstar has scored an unbelievable total of 61 points from the last two encounters with Steelers. Pawan broke Pardeep’s record (34) of highest points in a PKL match by scoring a whopping 39 points against Steelers where he scored three raid points more than Haryana’s tally of 36 points. The recent form also favors Sehrawat as the destructive raider has fetched 45 raid points from the last four fixtures.
Jaideep Dahiya: The left-cover defender’s courageous efforts of four tackle points went in vain as the blue side was utterly thrashed by Bengaluru. We have also witnessed a dip in the recent form of Jaideep as the K7 product could score only two tackle points from the last two games. The youngster is enjoying his debut season at the PKL after holding the third position at the tackle points charts of Season 8.
Predicted Starting 7’s
Bengaluru Bulls: Pawan Kumar Sehrawat (C), Chandran Ranjit, Bharat Hooda, Mahender Singh, Mayur Kadam, Saurabh Nandal, Jaideep Sharma
Haryana Steelers: Vikash Kandola (C), Ashish Narwal, Meetu Sharma, Jaideep Dahiya, Mohit Nandal, Surender Nada, Ravi Kumar
Prediction
The head-to-head count before the commencement of the Season 8 was constant on 2-2 as the Steelers will be aiming to equal it yet again. While the red side will be fully charged up to register their first double over Haryana after having the advantage of winning the last two encounters with huge differences.