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Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) Season 7 is all set to commence from the 20th of July. Last season saw the young Bengaluru Bulls go all the way to lift their maiden PKL trophy.
Before going into the 2019 auction, the Bulls' management made sure to retain the core behind last season's triumph. With Rohit Kumar, Pawan Kumar Sehrawat, Ashish Kumar as the elite retained players, they also did retain a couple of young players - Amit Sheoran and Sumit Singh, who had impressed in the previous season.
Amit Sheoran proved to be an effective left corner defender in the later stages of the season and rose up to become a vital cog in the Bulls' defense. Sumit Singh, on the other hand, has been a part of the Bulls' squad since season 4. While Sumit did not get adequate opportunities to showcase his skills in the previous seasons, he would hope for more time on the mat this season around.
The Bulls' coach Randhir Singh is known to scout talented young players and back them up. The rising stock of Pawan Kumar Sehrawat, Mahender Singh, and Ashish Kumar Sangwan in PKL is a consequence of this faith and belief. Coach Singh has brought in a few young players this time around as well - Mohit Sehrawat, a cover defender, and Banty, a raider.
Some of the key signings by the Bulls in this year's auction was of Mahender Singh (₹80 lakh), Vijay Kumar (₹21.25 lakh), Raju Lal Choudhary (₹10 lakh), and Vinod Kumar (₹10 lakh). While Mahender and Raju were part of the champion squad in the last season, the signings of Vijay and Vinod was to bolster their defense and attack respectively.
Vijay Kumar has been signed in to strengthen the right corner defense of the Bulls', while Vinod Kumar, an experienced raider, has been a catch for the Bulls at his base price and would be the third raider that the Bulls' starting 7 needed.
Even after the auction, certain areas of concerns are quite visible with the Bulls' squad.
The raiding contingent is thin, with just 6 raiders in the side, and quite inexperienced. With the exception of the top three - Rohit, Pawan, and Vinod Kumar, none of the raiders have had much experience at the PKL stage. In case of an injury concern to the top three, the Bulls' would find themselves in a hard spot.
The defense, although quite young, seems to be an area of least concern for the Bulls' with sufficient backups for each position. Raju Lal Choudhary's fitness would be an area to keep an eye on.
While other teams are replete with all-rounders, the Bulls' squad has just two - Ashish Kumar Sangwan- who is more of a cover defender than an all-rounder - and Sanjay Shrestha, who has been a part of the PKL since the inaugural season but has featured in just a couple of matches. This could haunt the Bulls' if their key raiders fail to find form in the tournament.
Strongest Playing 7
Raiders: Rohit Kumar (c), Pawan Kumar Sehrawat, Vinod Kumar
Cover Defenders: Mahender Singh (left), Ashish Kumar Sangwan (right)
Corner Defenders: Amit Sheoran (left), Raju Lal Choudhary (right)
