U Mumba
U Mumba’s victory against the Puneri Paltan came by a large margin in the end but the match was quite a bit close than that. Both sides had a strong defense and it was down tot he raiders to break the shackles.
For Mumbai, Abhishek Singh and Arjun Deshwal provided the openings as they raided their way to 5 points each.
U Mumba is without Siddharth Desai this season and while Abhishek Singh has stepped up to the plate admirably, they would still like to develop another high-quality raider to help balance their side.
Arjun Deshwal has the capability to be that raider. He has immense speed and is more agile than he first appears. It also helps that is as strong as an ox and very hard to keep down on the mat. Look forward to seeing much more of Arjun Deshwal in the Pro Kabaddi League.
Fazel Atrachali and Surender Singh continue to keep the U Mumba defense tight and ensured there were not too many mistakes made. This was not the best defensive showing by U Mumba but we don’t think they needed it.
Against the Bengaluru Bulls, though, Fazel and company will have to be at their very best.
Bengaluru Bulls
A heavy defeat to the Gujarat Fortunegiants in their second match brought the Bulls down to earth. They know they to play better than they did last season when they ended up as champions. The matchup between Pawan Kumar Sehrawat and Fazel Atrachalai is going to be fun to watch and dare we say it, decisive to the outcome of the match.
Pawan Kumar Sehrawat has been in the points but the Gujarat Fortunegiants showed he can be contained through some tight defense.
We expect Pawan Kumar Sehrawat to strike back hard and make life very difficult for U Mumba.
Rohit Kumar has been a bit subdued in this season of the PKl so fra and needs to break out of that mold quickly. With no Kashiling Adake in the side, the Bengaluru Bulls need more from their frontline raiders than before.
Mahender Singh has been leading the Bengaluru Bulls defense but this is not their strong point. There are a lot of weaknesses and mistakes that can be exploited by a strong raiding team and the Bengaluru Bulls will have to be careful not to allow the U Mumba raiders free run of the mat.
Abhishek Singh has 22 points to his name in PKL 2019 already. Fazel Atrachali has 10 tackle points and is the third most successful defender at this early stage of the tournament.
U Mumba is going to be tested by the Bengaluru Bulls but we think their defense has the capability to absorb everything Pawan Kumar Sehrawat throws at them. The Bengaluru Bulls defense, pn the other hand, has a lot of holes in it which can be exploited.
Bet on U Mumba to win.