PKL 2018 | How can your favourite teams make it to playoffs of season 6

12/08/2018

Less than one month to go for the final of the sixth season of the Pro Kabaddi League and various teams are pulling up their socks to put up a good show in their last few matches to get a ticket for the playoffs. Few teams have been knocked out and some have already made it to the playoffs.

Zone A

Gujarat Fortunegiants

Gujarat Fortunegiants have already made it to the playoffs with 73 total points from 18 games and are currently leading the Zone A points table with U Mumba just below them with 72 from as many games. As both the teams have already made it to the next round, their eyes will be on the topmost position at the end of the league stage. The Sunil Kumar-led side will face Haryana Steelers, Jaipur Pink Panthers (2 matches) and Patna Pirates in their upcoming matches. If they win all their remaining games, which is a possibility considering the kind of form they are in, then they can easily end at the top and that would mean, one win in the playoffs and they can make it to their second consecutive PKL final.

U Mumba

With a right balance of defenders and raiders in the team, U Mumba was right at the top of the table for the most part of the league till the Ahmedabad leg where the Fortunegiants toppled them. After playing the match against Bengal Warriors today, they will meet Dabang Delhi, Jaipur Pink Panthers and UP Yoddha in their remaining games of the league stage. The Fazel Atrachali-led side has not struggled against any other teams in the past leaving aside their defeats against the Foortunegiants. So, winning four back-to-back matches is certainly a possibility for the team from India's financial capital. But, even they secure wins in all the games, they have to hope for Gujarat to get beaten in one of its four matches which will allow them to top the zone at the end of the league stage.

Dabang Delhi KC

After Puneri Paltan lost its game against Patna Pirates last evening, Dabang Delhi KC is certain to go into the next round of the league. They had a sensational home leg as they won five out of their six matches in Delhi which ensured that they don’t leave a chance for the other two teams like Puneri Paltan and Haryana Steelers who had a poorer run as compared to the team from the national capital. They have three more matches to go and making it to the top of the points table will be next to impossible for the Joginder Narwal-led team. They can hope for getting the better of U Mumba in the next match in Vizag to at least finish at the second position in the zone if at all Mumba struggles in a few other games. They have a straightforward calculation of winning at least one out of their three remaining matches and losing one of the other two by a margin of less than seven points to stay ahead of the Pink Panthers if at all the inaugural champs manage to win all their matches.

Puneri Paltan and Haryana Steelers

Puneri Paltan was knocked out of the playoff race after they lost to the defending champions Patna Pirates last evening as they have only 47 points with seven wins from as many as 20 games. Haryana has four games still to go but a loss on the last day of the Delhi leg against UP Yoddha and a win for Delhi against Tamil Thalaivas knocked the Steelers out of the race as they have only 38 points from 18 matches and four wins can give them only 20 more points which will not be enough for their qualification.

Jaipur Pink Panthers

For the Jaipur Pink Panthers, they have a mathematical chance of making it to the top three. The Pink Panthers have performed terribly this season and have managed only 20 points from 13 games. For them, winning all the remaining matches from here on will take them to 65 which means they have to hope Delhi loses all its remaining games. If Delhi manages one win and Jaipur wins all its nine matches then both the teams will clash with an equal number of points and the score difference will be taken into account in which the Dabang Delhi is 97 points ahead of Jaipur at this stage. The average difference per game comes to 10.77 which is again really tough for the Pink Panthers to better this score difference.

Zone B

Bengaluru Bulls

The scenario in Zone B is completely different from that of Zone A as there is not a single team that has the ‘Q’ attached to it on the points table. Bengaluru Bulls are almost through to the next round with 59 total points from 17 matches so far in the tournament. They have 10 wins so far and are ahead by eight points from of Patna Pirates. They have two back-to-back matches to play against Telugu Titans before meeting Patna Pirates, and Bengal Warriors in the zone and Jaipur Pink Panthers in the Inter-Zone Wildcard match. Winning all their remaining games will take them to a total of 84 points which will ensure they remain at the top of the table from Zone B.

Patna Pirates

It has been a dream run for Patna Pirates after their home leg came to an end. They have lost only one game after that and with nine wins from 17 matches they have a total of 51 points and are currently placed second in the pool. They are in a comfortable position to make it to the playoffs but finishing at the top will require five consecutive wins and an extra defeat for the Bulls as well. If they win all their remaining games they will get to 76 points and that will mean the Bulls will finish with 79 as there is a game between the two teams which is scheduled to be played. The other two matches against Bengal Warriors and Telugu Titans are also crucial as both the sides have played three games lesser than the Pirates and have a chance of overtaking them from the second place.

Bengal Warriors

Bengal Warriors have played only 14 matches and are at the third position with 43 points. They will play their home leg at the end and prior to that, they will play U Mumba and Tamil Thalaivas in Vizag and Panchkula respectively. Winning all their remaining games will take them to the next round with a total of 83 points and they will have a chance of displacing Bengaluru Bulls from the top as well as the Warriors and Bulls are scheduled to meet in Kolkata. They are ahead of Telugu Titans by nine points by playing the equal number of matches so far in the tournament and are scheduled to play the Titans at home as well. As per the current position, the Warriors still can afford a couple of defeats and make it to the playoffs ahead of the Titans.

Telugu Titans

With eight matches to go, the Titans can get 40 more points at max and in the process to qualify for the playoffs they would want to defeat teams like Patna and Bengal who are ahead of them and also expect Bengal to lose at least three games out of their remaining eight. For the Titans, they need to have a clear-cut idea of getting wins from all their remaining matches from today. They have an upper edge over Jaipur, Haryana and UP in the next three games while they might get a tough challenge from Bengaluru, Patna and Bengal to march ahead to the playoffs. By winning all the remaining games, the Titans can get to 74 while Bengal can go ahead of them if they manage to win six games and lose one below the margin of seven points which will bring the calculation to the score difference with both the teams with the equal number of points.

Tamil Thalaivas and UP Yoddha

Both Tamil Thalaivas and UP Yoddha have an outside chance to make it to the next round but it looks next to impossible. Tamil and UP are on 34 points each and they have five matches to go at the league stage. They need to win all their remaining matches and if that happens, they will get to only 59 points. They will meet each other once in the remaining matches as well which will be an eliminator for either of the sides if they go ahead winning all their remaining four games. Again, they have to be over-dependent on both Bengal Warriors and Telugu Titans expecting them to perform terribly in their home leg so that they can get a mathematical chance of making it to the playoffs.