BENGALURU BULLS CARVED OUT a 31-30 win over Puneri Paltan in the concluding tie of the league stage of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Kreeda Nagari in Pune. Pune tried their level best to end on a winning note but fell short in the end. Bengaluru finished with 48 points at third place and Puneri Paltan with 21 points ended last in eighth place. Bengaluru now move on to Mumbai to face Telugu Titans in the semis.
For Pune a win was so near and yet so far after inflicting an all-out on their rivals in the 11th minute. Ravi V, their raider was in full flight as he scored at will for Pune initially. He had good support from Sachin V. Bengaluru brought in Deepak Dahiya and he impressed. Manjeet as usual was his usual self, confident with his raiding and tackles. Bengaluru hit back very soon to score a lona and lead 16-13 which was 19-16 at the break.
The match came to life in the second half due to Balamahendra Kalimuthu who averted an all-out on his team. He came up with a super raid to bring his team close to 20-23. Sachin V taking inspiration from Bala came with a super raid of his own. An all-out averted Pune kept their rivals in sight at 23-25.
It was a neck and neck tussle but Bengaluru never allowed their rivals to grab the lead. The closest Pune came was at 28-28 when Bala got a two point raid. A super tackle on Bala closed the match for Bengaluru with a two point lead at 30-28. Sachin went all out but Deepak Dahiya got a point to clinch the game in favour of the Bulls.