Bengaluru: A well-balanced Patna Pirates squad thrashed an in-form U Mumba side 43-23 in Match 47 of Pro Kabaddi League Season 8 at The Sheraton Grand, Whitefield, Bengaluru, proving why they are early season favourites for a playoff position.

Patna dominated from the start, with Neeraj Kumar and Mohammadreza Shadloui earning high 5s for their defence. All of their players contributed to the Pirates' victory, which helped them move ahead of Dabang Delhi KC in the standings.

Ajith Kumar, the standout raider for U Mumba, was unavailable for the match. The raiding department's lack of confidence threw the entire squad off balance. As the Patna Pirates tackled vigorously, Abhishek Singh failed to compensate with points. Mumbai's corner defenders, Fazel Atrachali and Rinku, on the other hand, made some uncanny errors.

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In the sixth minute of the game, Patna inflicted their first ALL OUT when Monu Goyat and Sachin exploited lapses in the Mumbai defence. The Pirates jumped out to a 7-point advantage, but Mumbai remained under siege. For Mumbai, Ashish Sangwan's Super Tackle provided a ray of optimism, but the lack of raiding alternatives continued to plague the Season 2 champions.

In the final raid of the half, Sachin believed he had the Pirates' second ALL OUT, but Rinku thwarted him with a remarkable one-man Super Tackle. With the Pirates leading 19-9 at halftime, the game was effectively over. In the first minute following the resumption, Patna got their second ALL OUT, with Neeraj Kumar scoring a high 5. The three-time winners showed no signs of faltering, continuing to dominate in all areas.

Patna began killing time with slow incursions, while Iranian Mohammadreza Shadloui protected their left flank. U Mumba controlled the 5 minutes following the first time out, coming dangerously close to an ALL OUT, but Mohammadreza Shadloui stopped them with a Super Tackle.

The Pirates' captain, Prashanth Kumar Rai, then scored a 2-point raid to get additional Pirates on the mat. The Pirates enjoyed a 15-point lead heading into the last five minutes and added salt to Mumba's wounds with two magnificent Super Tackles. The victory propelled the Pirates to the top of the standings.