Top 5 young players of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3

The third season of the Star Sports Pro KabaddiLeague saw a lot of young players shining. Bubbling with youthful exuberance, they put up an exhibition of skills that reflected their maturity as they stood out for their respective teams. Many a time, they also proved to be match-winners.This was further vindicated when Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3 got over as the tournaments most prestigious awards for individual performances all went to youngsters this time. It also goes on to show that Indias future in kabaddi lies in safe hands.Here are the top 5 young performers who made their mark in Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3.

#5 Mohit Chhillar - 22 years (U Mumba)

22-year-old Mohit Chhillar was a big factor in U Mumba’s stunning fightback in the Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3 finale against the Patna Pirates as they leveled the score at 28-apiece. Aided by Fazel Atrachali, he was able to pin down the rampant Rohit Kumar multiple times and that gave Mumbai a fighting chance of lifting the trophy again.

The right corner specialist defender’s tight leg holds and his ability to surprise the raider came to Mumbai’s rescue several times during the league. He was just what the former champions needed in the wake of their veteran defender Jeeva Kumar’s indifferent form.

With his 44 successful tackles, Mohit Chhillar featured at the fourth position in the list of the best defenders this season.

#4 Sandeep Narwal - 22 years (Patna Pirates)

There is a reason why Sandeep Narwal is referred to as the ‘Beast from the East’. He relinquished the Patna Pirates captaincy this season, but his stupendous effort in defence was one of the prime reasons why the Pirates emerged as the champions.

What is most impressive about the 22-year-old Sandeep is how he had to curb his attacking instincts and focus more on making himself an unbreachable barrier this season. His patience and composure in order to tackle the raider at the most opportune moment paid rich dividends. His frontal block dashed the hopes of many a raider entering the Patna box as Sandeep grappled with authority. All his skills were evident in the final as he got the better of the U Mumba captain Anup Kumar in outstanding fashion more than once.

His impact can be understood from his staggering 53 successful tackles and his ratio of 3.78 tackles per match. Quite deservedly, the ‘Best Defender of the Tournament’ award was bestowed upon the youngster.

#3 Nitin Tomar - 20 years (Bengal Warriors)

20-year-old Nitin Tomar turned out to be Bengal Warriors’ most effective and dependable player this season. Without a doubt, it was largely because of him that NileshShinde’s men were able to finish in the top four after struggling for the past two years.

Nitin was, unfortunately, injured during the Jaipur and the Patna legs which is why he was able to play just 10 matches. In those matches, he was able to establish himself as a terror for Bengal’s rival teams. His thunderous pace, jumps and acrobatics gave him the epithet ‘Tornado Tomar’ as he kept making inroads into opponents’ defensive units to devastating effect.

In the Warriors’ home leg, he was in fabulous form and did not score below 8 in any of the four matches, which included a 9-point haul against eventual champions Patna Pirates. He finished Season 3 with 77 raid points and 6.8 successful raids per match – the highest percentage amongst all players.

#2 Rishank Devadiga - 22 years (U Mumba)

One of the principle reasons why former champions U Mumba were able to leave behind their average start to the Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3 and soar high is because of this man - Rishank Devadiga. The 22-year-old’s maturity was all the more visible when he had to take up the responsibility of being the team’s leading raider as skipper Anup Kumar had to honour his national team commitments during the South Asian Games.

He played his role to perfection, leading his team very well. He was the chief architect of U Mumba’s 10-match winning streak in the league stage and in only two out of those 10, he scored below 7. His immense talent and quick thinking were often the difference between his team and their opposition, especially in Mumbai’s incredible 29-28 defeat of the Bengaluru Bulls and their 34-28 win over the Patna Pirates. Both times, he made himself indispensable to the team’s cause.

Rishank finished with a season-high 86 successful raids and was rightly adjudged as the ‘Raider of the Tournament’.

#1 Pardeep Narwal - 19 years (Patna Pirates)

The shy-looking Pardeep Narwal was a revelation inStar Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3. He turned just 19 in February during the tournament, but his performance on the mat simply belies his age.

The raider was transferred to the Pirates from the Bengaluru Bulls this year and immediately proved himself to be a prized treasure of the entire team. His passion, flexibility and anticipatory powers were immaculate and awarded him 116 raid points this season – the maximum in Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 3. His somersaults to outwit robust defenders helped him a lot, especially in the match against the Telugu Titans in Mumbai. With a whopping 24 points, he was a class apart that evening.

Without a shadow of a doubt, Pardeep will be an asset to the Indian national team in the near future.