PKL Season 8 Preview: Bengal Warriors eye win against Pirates; Thalaivas take on bottom-placed Puneri Paltan

Bengaluru, Dec 30: In a clash of bottom-placed teams, Puneri Paltan will take on Tamil Thalaivas in the first encounter on day ten of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) Season 8 here on Friday (December 30). In the second match of the evening, Patna Pirates will lock horns with defending champions Bengal Warriors.

Puneri Paltan, despite showing glimpses of brilliance through their all-rounder Aslam Inamdar, have struggled to gather points with Rahul Chaudhari not getting the expected points. Patna Pirates suffered a humiliating loss against Dabang Delhi K.C. and will be looking to get back to winning ways.

Thaliavas missing the finishing touch

Tamil Thalaivas have been involved in two ties this season (in three matches). Coach J Udaya Kumar will now need to figure a way to ensure they convert these tight games into victories. In Manjeet and Bhavani Rajput they have two lanky raiders who have impressed in patches. But Thaliavas' habit of losing momentum towards the closing stages of the match has seen them concede cheap points.

Captain Surjeet Singh will need to marshal his defence well against Puneri Paltan's raiding trio of Aslam Inamdar, Mohit Goyat and Pankaj Mohite. The three youngsters have been the backbone of coach Anup Kumar's plans with Rahul Chaudhari not being given the full 40 minutes on the mat. With one win in three matches, Puneri Paltan are languishing at the bottom of the PKL season 8 points table.

Warriors need to bounce back

Defending champions Bengal Warriors will be looking to bounce back after a humiliating 52-35 defeat against Season 7 finalists Dabang Delhi K.C. on Wednesday. The Warriors struggled against Delhi raider Naveen Kumar and that could force a few changes in the starting line-up against Patna Pirates.

Their defender Sachin Vittala had a particularly bad day on the mat with poorly time tackles while the ever-reliable Mohammad Esmaeil Nabibakhsh could only fetch 3 bonus points. The only positive was the performances of raiders Maninder Singh and Sukesh Hegde who picked up 25 points in total.

Patna have two wins in three matches have looked unfazed by Pardeep Narwal's move to U.P. Yoddha in the auctions. Their raiding unit of Monu Goyat, captain Prashant Kumar Rai, and Sachin should pose a tough challenge for Bengal defence. In defence, the duo of Sajin C and Mohammadreza Chiyaneh has looked in great form for the three-time champions.

Both matches will be played at The Sheraton Grand, Whitefield Bengaluru - the fixed venue for Season 8 of PKL.

Timings:

7:30 PM: Tamil Thalaivas vs Puneri Paltan

8:30 PM: Patna Pirates vs Bengal Warriors

Channels and live streaming:

All matches can be watched on Star Sports Network and Disney+ Hotstar.