The Tamil Thalaivas have been one of the teams that have struggled massively this season of the PKL. They started the season poorly and were never able to recover from that. Now, in the dying stages of the season, it is difficult to see what they may have left in the tank to change things around.
Still, this matchup against the Jaipur Pink Panthers would be one that the Tamil Thalaivas had penciled in as one they should be able to win.
Once again, the key man for the Tamil Thalaivas will be Ajay Thakur. Whatever the state of the Tamil Thalaivas may be, Ajay Thakur has proven that he is an excellent raider innumerable times in the PKL. He is going to be leading the attack for the Thalaivas in this math as well.
He will be wary of the threat the Mohit Chillar and Sandeep Dhull poses on the Jaipur Pink Panthers defense. The Tamil Thalaivas have struggled with the lack of a good backup raider and that is not going to change. Keeping Thakur on the mat for a long time and allowing to get as many raids in as possible will be something that could be decisive to the outcome of the game.
The Tamil Thalaivas have been found wanting in their defense this season. Manjeet Chillar has been good for the Thalaivas in aggressively going after the opposition raiders. If someone like Sukesh Hegde can provide the backup that Ajay Thakur needs more consistently them maybe the Tamil Thalaivas can be a force to be reckoned with.
The Jaipur Pink Panthers have been a one-man band this season. Deepak Niwas Hooda has seven Super-10’s to his name and been brilliant for the side on the raiding front. Most of those performances have come in losing causes, though, and that is a reflection of the people around him.
Anup Kumar has been a shadow of himself and while Ajinkya has shown some sparks of brilliance, it has not been enough to win his side games. There are some very talented players on the offense and defense of this side but they simply need to play better to have a chance.
The Jaipur Pink Panthers have won just one of their last seven games while the Tamil Thalaivas have done marginally better by winning two games out of their seven. These are two out of form teams that are being bashed by their opponents in the PKL this season.
The Jaipur Pink Panthers have an in-form Deepak Niwas Hooda to carry them. He is going to be helped by going up against a weak Tamil Thalaivas defense. We see this as an opportunity for the Pink Panthers to register a win after having come close in a few matches recently.
Back the Jaipur Pink Panthers to win.