Mumbai, August 31, 2014: 55 hard fought matches. 2,200
demanding minutes of game play. Hundreds and hundreds of touches and tackles,
dips and dives, whacks and whallops, all leading up to the last match of the
last day of the last venue of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi. Everything has been
counting down to this. The Jaipur Pink Panthers and U Mumba, fixed against each
other by an uncanny twist of fate to end the league with the same match that
got it all started. Tonight, of course, would be a very different night from
that pioneering night on the 26th of July. The winner tonight, Jaipur Pink
Panthers, would be the first ever champion of India’s very own Pro Kabaddi
league, a title that would put the heroic team down in history as the original
legends of the sport. With a deafening crowd that filled the NSCI to its very
brim, kabaddi was having the night of its life.
The Mumbai crowd, it should be noted, suffered from a
foundational split. The Jaipur team, with its immense talent and Bollywood
support, found itself with the same amount of hometown boost as the opposing
Mumbai squad. An equal glow of orange and pink filled the stands, but this
equality would not manifest itself on the mat. Both teams played with an ardent
spirit, and the concept of ultimate victory added a previously unseen strength
and speed to their already tremendous skill. The final 5 minutes however,
placed the Jaipur Pink Panthers 11 points ahead and the ultimate winners of the
league.
The game had begun in exactly the opposite format that it
ended, cautious and slow, but the journey in between would give the match all
the drama Kabaddi fans had learned to expect. For the first 10 minutes,
throughout lightning raids and thunderous tackles that sent raiders flying out
of the lobby, neither teams would give up any ground. But the 11th minute
saw the scales fall in the Panther’s favour. 2 tactical mistakes from the
Mumbai team had left them with only Riskank Devadiga, who hopelessly outnumbered
could not outsmart the Jaipur defence. Thus, an all-out, put the Panthers 13 –
7 ahead. They would fight to maintain this lead with tooth and nail, and their
determination would be well rewarded. An impossible escape from Shabeer
Sharfudheen gave U Mumba 2 points, as the audiencewas treated to Shabeer
spinning himself out of a full-faced grab by 2 Panthers. Followed up by a
successful tackle, Mumbai was able to bring the scores to 16 – 12, closing in
on the Panther’s lead. But after Jaipur closed the first half by a single
handed, wrecking-ball tackle of Anup by Prashant Chavan, Jaipur was prepped to
dominate once again. Exhibiting the same defensive fortitude that had
humiliated Patna
in the semi-finals, Jaipur gave the Mumbai team nothing, while Maninder and
Jasvir took the players apart. Faced with an all-out in the 30th minute,
the last man crumbled under the Panther attack, and the lead grew to 27 – 15.
As the clock clicked on, Jaipur would not ease up at all.
As Jasvir walked the centre line in the final minute,
running out the final time, it was with the proud knowledge that his team would
go down forever as the first champions of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi. His victory
would be preserved in history alongside the final score, with the crushing
defeat of U Mumba and a score of 35 – 24.
Amongst the individual winners, Arjuna Awardee and the
vice-captain of the Indian National Kabaddi Team, Anup Kumar one of the
most experienced players in the league, was awarded the Star Sports Pro Kabaddi
Most Valuable Player Award. Averaging at 5 raids per game, his style has been
consistent throughout his career and was reflected in his captaincy of the
UMumba team.
Rahul Chaudhari of the Telugu Titans was awarded Best Raider
of the tournament, an award in recognition of scoring a record 23 raid
points in a single match against UMumba in Vizag, andbecoming the first
raider to cross the century benchmark. The 21-year-old, always a trump card for
the Telugu Titans, at 151 Raid Points was tonight Rs. 75,000 richer the top
raider of the first Star Sports Pro Kabaddi League.
The Top Defender of the Star Sports Pro Kabaddi League, was
chart topper and all-rounder Manjit Chillar has been one of Bengaluru
Bulls’ most effective weapons. Leading the Bulls’ charge, Manjit’s experience
provides him with that additional mojo that helps him to oust as many players
as possible. An ankle-hold specialist, Manjit Chillar’s grip on the Raider’s
mind is also what makes him formidable.
Patna Pirates get third place
In the first match of the night that decided the fate of the
team to be paced third, Patna Pirates bulldozed the Bengaluru Bulls, winning
the encounter 29-22. Starting the match on a high, Sandeep Narwal started the
proceedings, scoring a 2-point raid in the fifth second. After trading blows
for the early few minutes the Bulls’ Kuldeep Singh was ousted, leaving
Bengaluru a 3-man side in the beginning of the fifth minute. Riding high on a
strong start, Patna ’s
first road block, was in the eight minute as Ajay Thakur and Dharmaraj
Cheralathan, who was also the best defender of the day, picked up Sandeep and
put him out of the matc. At half-time scores were 9-15.
As the second half began, Ravi Dalal was dramatically picked
up and spun around by the Bulls to gain a crucial point. But the Pirates
refused to take the humiliation and paid back in the 23rdminute, grabbing
Ajay’s ankle, picking him up and throwing him right out. At the end of the
27thminute, Patna
was leading the match by 8 points and the lead continued to escalate as Ravi
Dalal ousted two Bengaluru Bulls with a spectacular dive. Denying the Bulls
every chance of a comeback, Patna
sealed the third place, overthrowing the Bulls 22-29
Photo and release: Organisers
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