Jaipur Pink Panthers is fresher and fitter than U Mumba, which got past Bengaluru Bulls 27-23 in the second semifinal late on Friday, as the STAR Sports ProKabaddi League approaches its climax.
Sunday’s final will feature the same two sides which kicked off the eight-city event, though the tide has turned.
U Mumba was the victor then. Mumba captain Anup Kumar and ace raider Shabeer Sharafudheen are recovering from leg injuries, as was evident during the semifinal against Bulls; catchers Mohit Chillar and Surender Nada pulled the team through.
ADVERTISEMENT
Patna Pirates was not able to stretch Panthers, giving the latter the advantage of more recovery time for the decider. Panthers skipper Navneet Gautam also has a full-strength squad at his disposal.
The defenders will determine the match outcome. Panthers’ specialist in the catching department,
Rohit Rana, displayed exceptional timing and craft in the semifinal.
ADVERTISEMENT
Fellow defenders Rajesh Narwal and Prashant Chavan can make a difference at critical stages.
Effective attackPanthers boast an effective attack spearheaded by the aggressive Jasvir Singh (eight raids and one tackle in the semifinal against Pirates) and supported by Maninder Singh and all-rounder Narwal.
The reverse suffered in the league opener is a mere statistic and counts for nothing. U Mumba’s initial burst of wins in the first leg at the NSCI was halted following Shabeer’s injury.
Panthers overtook the early leader and has since shown solidity in defence and attack to emerge league topper.
Both coaches, Kashinathan Bhaskaran (Panthers) and Ravi Shetty (U Mumba), would have realised by now that the execution of plans as a group determines the final outcome, and not individual reputations built on post-match awards.