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The Vivo Pro Kabaddi 2019 will commence at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium in Hyderabad as the hosts Telugu Titans will lock horns with season 2 champions U Mumba in the opening match of the competition.
The Puneri Paltan, one of the franchises which are yet to win a Pro Kabaddi title have a strong squad for PKL 7 and will be led by ace cover defender Surjeet Singh while veteran Indian kabaddi player and Arjuna Awardee Anup Kumar will be playing a role as the team's coach for season 7.
Puneri Paltan signed 16 players for PKL 7. Manjeet, Darshan Kadian, Pawan Kumar Kadian are some of the youngsters who will be a part of the Paltan. They also re-signed Girish Ernak, PO Surjeet Singh and Nitin Tomar.
The Puneri Paltan are set to play their first league stage match against the Haryana Steelers on 22nd July 2019. The home leg of the Paltan will start on 14th September 2019 and will culminate on 20th September 2019 at the Shri Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex, Pune.
Here is a look at the three reasons why the Puneri Paltan could win the title.
#3 Plethora of options in the raiding unit
Services player Nitin Tomar will be the lead raider for Puneri Paltan in Pro Kabaddi season 7. Along with Nitin Tomar, Manjeet, Darshan Kadian, Pawan Kumar Kadian, Amit Kumar, and Emad Sedaghat Nia are the other raiders in the squad which gives the Paltan squad an extra dimension.
Nitin Tomar has 377 raid points from 53 matches. The management will be hoping for his full fitness throughout the season. In the last PKL edition, he had to miss a number of matches due to injury. Young raider Manjeet, who had a blockbuster debut season with Patna Pirates could be the secondary raider of Puneri Paltan. He scored 87 raid points in 22 games for Patna Pirates last year.
Another raider is Darshan Kadian who was part of U Mumba in the last season. He scored 49 raid points in 14 matches, with a Super 10 to his name. Puneri Paltan might use him as a do-or-die raider. Apart from this, Pawan Kumar Kadian, Amit Kumar, and Iranian Emad Sedaghat Nia are the raiders who could get a chance in the starting seven of Puneri Paltan.
#2 Perfect balance of youth and experience in the defense
Regarded as one of the best right cover defenders India has ever produced, Services' player PO Surjeet will lead the Puneri Paltan. He has 215 tackle points from 73 matches at an average of 2.96 tackle points per game.
Maharashtrian Girish Ernak will yet again be a force to reckon with from the left corner position. Girish has 228 tackle points from 89 games at an average of 2.56 tackle points per game. Both Surjeet and Girish are experienced defenders and will play a key role in Pune's campaign.
Young guns like Shubham Shinde and Sanket Sawant could be part of Puneri's starting seven for the initial matches of PKL 7. Satpal, Jadhav Shahaji, Deepak Yadav, and Iranian Hadi Tajik will be the other defenders who could also be tested in the middle of season.
These young players will play under the likes of PO Surjeet Singh and Girish Ernak which will be beneficial for them and the team, with a number of strong raiders set to come against the team.
#1 Immensely experienced Anup Kumar as the coach
Puneri Paltan have appointed former Indian Kabaddi player Anup Kumar as their coach for season 7. An Arjuna awardee and two-times Asian Games Gold medalist, Anup Kumar's experience will be crucial for the Paltan.
Anup was the captain of U Mumba for the first five Pro Kabaddi seasons. Under his brilliant leadership, U Mumba clinched the title in season 2. his ability to stay calm under all situations will be crucial to Puneri Paltan' chances as his captaincy methods could rub on Surjeet Singh.
With buckets of experience under his belt, Anup's understanding of the game will be key to ensure that the Paltan do not give away points under pressure. With a host of superstars in the team such as Nitin Tomar, Girish Ernak and skipper Surjeet himself, Anup's experience will be key to guide the Paltan.
