PKL 11: Key battles to watch out for in match 19 Jaipur Pink Panthers vs Tamil Thalaivas

Both teams are coming after losing their previous match.

A blockbuster Sunday awaits as the inaugural champions Jaipur Pink Panthers will fight against Tamil Thalaivas. Both teams have made a positive start to their PKL 11 campaign with two wins and one loss. For Thalaivas after two impressive wins, they had to suffer a heartbreaking loss against Patna Pirates.

It was yet another case of the Pirates producing raw talent as Devank Dalal scored a whopping 25 points to single-handedly win the game against the Thalaivas. Thalaivas were quite disappointed to lose the game after leading for most of the game. They would take it as an aberration and would want to put a better performance against the Pink Panthers.

The Panthers are also coming off a loss against last year’s finalists Haryana Steelers. Arjun Deshwal had suffered a niggle and was out for a while in the game. The Steelers capitalized on it as they took the momentum and carried it to a confidence-boosting win.

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Therefore, it is important for the teams to win the game and regain the lost momentum quickly. The starting seven are filled with stars who will be battling against each other to get the edge and the all-important five points. Here are three battles that could play a role in deciding the fate of the match.

Sachin Tanwar vs Surjeet Singh

Two players who have changed teams will be up against each other for the Sunday encounter. Surjeet Singh will be standing in the right corner trying to stop the most expensive player from the season 10 Auction. The last season saw them involved in an epic battle with Surjeet displaying a 3-0 clean sweep over Sachin which helped his team win the game by two points.

Sachin, an ever-improving player in the circuit would want to set things right. But it won’t be easy to do against the league’s most successful Indian defender. Moreover, the recent games also saw him brought down by the cover defenders, especially during Do-or-die raids. No one knows it better than the 25-year-old and he would be eager to change in this game.

Arjun Deshwal vs Sahil Gulia

Sahil Gulia has been a consistent dominating force in defense for Tamil Thalaivas in the last four years. He is one of the reasons the men in yellow avoid the last-place finishes. Despite these credentials, he has struggled against one man, who does the job with ease. It’s the Raid Machine Arjun Deshwal who relishes playing against Thalaivas.

In the last four games he has played against them, Arjun has scored three Super 10s. His primary target has been Sahil Gulia as he goes deep into the corner to entice him and execute his classic escape to get past the line with points.

Arjun had a bad game against Haryana and would like to stamp his authority with another Super 10 against one of his favorite teams. The Thalaivas skipper Sahil would be watching like an eagle to catch him.

Narender Kandola vs Ankush

Two people made their debut in the season nine of the Pro Kabaddi League. Narender Kandola did it for Tamil Thalaivas and Ankush Rathee did it for Jaipur Pink Panthers. Narender with his raiding abilities took Thalaivas to their first-ever playoffs and Ankush Rathee helped Jaipur win their second PKL title in history.

Narender was awarded the New Young Player of the Season award and Ankush was bestowed with the Best Defender of the Season award. With such accolades, both have crossed paths with the results slightly favoring Ankush. But Narender has been in great form this season and if he could get the better of Ankush, then Thalaivas could get a win. Will be an interesting battle to watch out for.

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