Dabang Delhi KC beat Patna Pirates to become PKL Season 8 champions

Pro Kabaddi League Season 8 trophy by eking out a close 37-36 win over Patna Pirates in the summit clash here on Friday. Delhi's star raider Naveen Kumar (13 points) and all-rounder Vijay (14 points) secured Super 10s as they overcame a tough challenge from three-time champions Patna Pirates. Patna had an uncharacteristically poor night in the defence with the likes of Mohammadreza Shadloui and Sunil committing far too many errors.

The Pirates, however, had a chance to level the scores in the final move of the match, but Naveen evaded the defenders to cross the baulk line and win Delhi their first VIVO PKL trophy. The match had a high intensity start with both sets of raiders picking up points. The defences opted for a cautious approach and conceded easy Bonus Points. Sachin's pace caused troubles in the Delhi defence while the Patna defenders stayed away from tackles on Delhi's Naveen Kumar. Mohammadreza Shadloui clinched the first successful tackle in the seventh minute and sent Naveen Kumar to the dugout. That helped Patna get a man advantage on the mat and they converted it into an ALL OUT by the 11th minute. The Pirates opened a four-point lead but Delhi immediately staged a fightback with Sandeep Narwal tackling Sachin successfully. Delhi matched Patna blow for blow but Sachin's clever raids helped the Pirates evade an ALL OUT. Both left corners -- Delhi's Joginder Narwal and Patna's Shadloui -- made uncanny errors. It became a cagey affair in the final minutes of the first half with both teams not wanting to make mistakes. The scores were 17-15 at the interval with Patna in the lead. Both the teams had just two successful tackles each in the first half. Naveen and Sachin opened the second half with successful