Bengaluru Bulls got the better of Jaipur Pink Panthers in the opening clash of the Jaipur leg, completing a convincing 28-23 win at the SMS Indoor Stadium in Jaipur in the first game on Friday. Deepak Sankar registered another High Five, while Alireza Mirzaian led the raiding department with eight points on the night for the visitors.
For the Pink Panthers, Nitin Kumar also earned eight points, but lacked enough support from his teammates. The Bulls embodied the aggressive attitude of the Season 12 right from the start, with Alireza Mirzaian delivering the first blow.
Deepak Sankar followed it up with a tackle on Nitin Kumar, giving his side a two-point lead in the early stages. Ali Samadi responded with a raid for the Pink Panthers, while Deepanshu Khatri’s tackle levelled the score in a sedate start to the game.
Nitin Kumar opened his account and got support from Ali Samadi as the two raiders kept the scoreboard ticking for their side. Sanjay Dhull and Aashish Malik did the same for the Bulls`, keeping the two teams level at 5-5 after the first ten minutes.
The Pink Panthers found some momentum and opened up a three-point gap before the Bengaluru Bulls responded with not one but two Super Tackles from Deepak Sankar. The defender completed his High Five in the first half, helping his side edge back in front.
Alireza Mirzaian found his rhythm in the closing stages of the first half, helping the Bulls extend their lead even further. The visitors capitalised on the momentum, inflicting an ALL OUT on the home side and ending the first half strongly with the score at 16-9.
With a couple of early raids, Nitin Kumar had a strong start to the second half as the hosts aimed to fight back. However, the Bulls continued to hold on to their seven-point advantage courtesy of Alireza Mirzaian and Satyappa Matti.
A yellow card to Deepanshu Khatri meant that Jaipur Pink Panthers had to dig deep to stay in the game at 21-15, heading into the final quarter of the game. The Bulls kept chipping away point-by-point to put themselves in a dominant position with five minutes to go in the game.
Unfortunately for the Pink Panthers, a second yellow card to Deepanshu Khatri closed the door to any possibility of a comeback. In the end, Satyappa registered his fourth tackle of the night, while Alireza finished strongly to ensure Bengaluru Bulls registered their third consecutive win in PKL12.