In the inaugural match of Season 11 of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL), Bengal Warriorz and U Mumba, two past champions, played a thrilling match at the GMCB Indoor Stadium in Gachibowli here on Saturday. U Mumba battled back after the Bengal Warriors held the lead for most of the game. At the final whistle, both teams were tied at 31-31 and had to settle for a draw in the first match of PKL Season 11.

The Bengal Warriors got off to a fast start, with Maninder Singh giving the U Mumba team, who were down in the first exchanges, the most trouble. Though the Bengal Warriors seemed to have a strong defense, Manjeet assisted U Mumba in leveling the match.

Both teams struggled to maintain a lead, and the match was close from the start.

Early on, Fazel Atrachali, Maninder Singh, and Sushil Kambrekar were carrying the majority of the Bengal Warriors’s workload, and by the ten-minute mark, they were up by one point. The Mighty Maninder kept scoring points as the first half went on, keeping the Bengal Warriors ahead of their rivals.

The Bengal Warriors increased their advantage when youthful Sushil Kambrekar gave the U Mumba an ALL OUT with less than five minutes remaining in the half. The Bengal Warriors were up 20–13 at the break.

Bengal Warriorz held off the U Mumba team after the interval. The Bengal Warriorz defense, led by Fazel Atrachali, had a tight appearance and was preventing anything from getting past them.

In the meantime, Maninder and Sushil Kambrekar were doing well as an attacking duo. However, the U Mumba team began to stage a significant comeback as the contest’s half-hour mark approached. The Bengal Warriors were up by two points after ten minutes of play, and it was becoming closer than Fazel and company would have liked.

Fazel played excellent defense in the closing stages of the game, but he was unable to stop Manjeet from giving the Bengal Warriors an ALL OUT, which ignited the U Mumba rally. U Mumba led by one point going into the last minute, but the Bengal Warriors rallied to tie the score.

The fiercely fought match ultimately ended in a draw. Maninder Singh and Mayur Kadam were the Bengal Warriors’s player choices, while Manjeet and Sombir were the mainstays for U Mumba.