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Indian Sports Live, December 4: Live sports news, commentary, scores and updates

East Bengal's Cleiton Silva celebrates scoring against Hyderabad FC in the Indian Super League on Saturday. FSDL

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Here are all the key updates from December 4, Monday:


ISL: East Bengal thrash NorthEast United 5-0

East Bengal finally have lift-off in their ISL campaign after a sensational 5-0 win over NorthEast United at the Salt Lake Stadium.

The hosts meant business from the opening exchanges and took the lead through Borja Herrera in the 14th minute, before Cleiton Silva doubled that lead ten minutes later. Cleiton added another in the second half, either side of Nandhakumar Sekar's brace as East Bengal nearly doubled the number of goals they'd scored in their opening six games (6).

Carles Cuadrat's side are now up to seventh in the ISL standings, leapfrogging both Chennaiyin FC and Bengaluru FC. They are a point behind NorthEast, who currently occupy the sixth and final playoff spot, with the Kolkata side having played a game fewer.


Warriors off to winning start; Bulls lose two in two

Bengal Warriors staved off a late charge from the Bengaluru Bulls to win 32-30 and condemn their opponents to their second successive loss of the new PKL season.

At one point, the result looked a foregone conclusion, with the Warriors holding a 27-17 lead, but the Bulls came charging back to level proceedings at 28-28 with two minutes to go. However, a couple of superb tackles from Shubham Shinde, including one off the last raid of the match from Bharat Hooda gave the Warriors a victorious start.

For the Bulls, it's been a disappointing start, especially for their starman from last season Bharat Hooda, who hasn't scored more than five points in either of his opening two games so far.


Puneri Paltan produce stunning comeback against Jaipur Pink Panthers

In a rematch of last season's PKL final to open their respective seasons, Puneri Paltan produced an exhilarating turnaround to beat Jaipur Pink Panthers 37-32 in the PKL on Monday. Jaipur led by nine points at one stage early in the second half, but that is when the Paltan defence came alive.

Eventually, the defending was the difference between the two sides, with Puneri Paltan picking up 13 tackle points compared to just 3 for Jaipur Pink Panthers. Eventually, despite Arjun Deshwal scoring 17 raid points in the match, the no-show from their defence condemned the champions to a loss to start their new season.

Jaipur's issues were exemplified by their two corner defenders, as the left corner Ankush Rathee - last season's most successful defender - attempted just one tackle, in a clear strategic win for Puneri Paltan who avoided raiding down his side of the mat. On the other side, the right corner Sahul Kumar was caught on seven occasions by the Paltan's raiders.


What is in store today?

  • East Bengal take on NorthEast United in the ISL

  • Pro Kabaddi League action continues with Puneri Paltan vs reigning champs Jaipur Pink Panthers and Bengaluru Bulls vs Bengal Warriors.

  • Mumbai City FC play Navbhor FC in their AFC Champions League match in Pune.


What happened yesterday?

  • Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto fought hard, but ended up on the wrong side of a 21-14, 17-21, 21-15 scoreline in the women's doubles final at the Syed Modi International.

  • FC Goa beat Kerala Blasters 1-0 in a top-of-the-table clash at the Fatorda. Goa lead now by two points, and have two games in hand over the Blasters.

  • Tamil Thalaivas won big, Gujarat Giants won their second game back-to-back.

  • India beat Australia by six runs: they took the five game T20I series 4-1

  • The AFI will not have any more national camps for their senior elite athletes.

  • In the I-League Mohemmadan Sporting extended their lead atop I-League to three points after beating Sreenidi Deccan 2-1.

You can check all the details of yesterday's news events here.