Hyderabad: Puneri Paltan secured their spot as the first finalists of the Pro Kabaddi League Season 10 after an emphatic 37-21 victory over three-time winners Patna Pirates at the GMC Balayogi Stadium here on Wednesday nighr.
In what was an all-round performance from the Paltan army, the heroics were led by their able skipper Aslam Inamdar’s 7 raid points as his team will now face off against the winner of Semi-Final 2 on Friday, March 1 in search of their maiden PKL title.
It was a close start to Semi-Final 1 as both Puneri Paltan and Patna Pirates exchanged early blows to keep the fans on the edge of their seats.
Sachin was the pick of the raiders for Patna Pirates once again but on the other side of the mat, an all-round performance from Puneri Paltan slightly kept them ahead of their opponents, as they eventually began to get a hold of the game.
Mohit Goyat’s successful Do-or-Die raid in the 6th minute started a flurry of points towards the end of the first half for the Paltan, inflicting an All-out on Patna Pirates.
Continuing his form in Season 10, Mohammadreza Chiyaneh led the defence with his tackling, with Aslam Inamdar’s raiding giving his team a 20-11 point at the end of the first half.
The Paltan carried the same momentum into the second half, getting Patna Pirates All-out once again. Sachin and Sudhakar M kept adding to the points for the Pirates but in the end, it was the Puneri Paltan team who went home the happier side.
Aslam Inamdar and Pankaj Mohite complemented each other well in the raiding department, while Mohammadreza Chiyaneh had support from Abinesh Nadarajan and Gaurav Khatri.
Patna Pirates fought to the very end but it was Puneri Paltan who earned a big win in the Semi-Final. Manjeet struck late for the Pirates in the second half.
However, the Paltan had an answer to all of Patna Pirates’ questions, sealing a much-deserved spot in their second consecutive final.