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After a near-perfect season, the Patna Pirates fell to a heartbreaking defeat at the last hurdle, finishing runners-up in the eighth edition of the Pro Kabaddi League. They'll aim to continue the good work in the upcoming season, despite missing some key personnel.
Head Coach Ram Mehar Singh has joined the Gujarat Giants, with lead raiders Sachin Tanwar, Monu Goyat, and Prashanth Kumar Rai all released for auction.
The Pirates were excellent in pretty much every department last season, finishing with the most tackle points and the second-most raid points. They finished at the top of the points table by a comfortable margin with a staggering points difference of +103. Left corner defender Mohammadreza Chiyaneh was their leader in defense, with Sachin taking on the primary raiding responsibilities.
While the raiders were released, the Patna Pirates retained most of their solid defensive unit. Mohammadreza Chiyaneh, Neeraj Kumar, and Sajin Chandrashekhar are among the Elite Retained Players' list, with raider Monu also retained under that category.
With plenty of change at the Pirates' camp, they have lots to do and sort out at the auction. Let's now look at three players the Patna Pirates should target at the auction.
Note: Both Pawan Sehrawat and Pardeep Narwal are excellent raiders who will immediately strengthen any side they play for. As such, no team in the league would mind taking a shot at the two players. However, to avoid repetition and to consider other players, Pawan and Pardeep won't feature in the list of players in the article. The Patna Pirates, like any other side, should try to get them if they can.
#3 Shrikanth Jadhav
Patna's strategy of going in with three lead raiders last season worked well, as reflected by their excellent tally of raid points. While none of them were as explosive as Pawan Sehrawat or Naveen Kumar, they shared the raiding burden effectively. Sachin Tanwar was ably supported by the more experienced Monu Goyat and Prashanth Kumar Rai.
Now that all three of them have been released, the Patna Pirates will have to look for suitable replacements for them, if not buy them back. A like-for-like replacement for Monu Goyat or Prashanth would be Shrikanth Jadhav. Historically one of UP Yoddha's best players, Jadhav did play second fiddle to both Pardeep Narwal and Surender Gill last season, scoring only 92 raid points.
However, he has it in him to shoulder lead-raiding responsibilities if needed. His raiding profile is calmer and more measured. He's good at reading the game and delivering under pressure, and should be an ideal foil for whichever lead raider the Pirates sign.
Given the more exciting names surrounding him, the Pirates could sign Shrikanth Jadhav for a reasonable price. He'd fit in well with the successful system they built last season.
#2 Vikash Khandola
An ideal candidate to become the Pirates' lead raider for the season, Vikash Khandola is someone who also fits the profile of the players they should go for. His numbers playing for the Haryana Steelers last season are very similar to that of Sachin Tanwar's, making him a quality replacement for the same.
Vikash has been a highly consistent PKL raider for quite a while now, scoring more than 150 raid points in each of the last three seasons. He's also good in the Do-or-Die raids, an area where Sachin excelled at.
Vikash is a more steady raider than some of the other names and has more consistent hauls than explosive bursts of points. Similar to Sachin or any of the Patna raiders last season, he's astute at reading the game and playing the situation well, putting in empty raids or longer raids whenever necessary.
While signing him will cost the Patna Pirates some money since he's likely to be in the top category of raiders, Vikash should be cheaper than some of the other names on that list. He's another player who could help the Pirates finish what they came so close to achieving last season.
#1 Abozar Mighani
The Patna Pirates have a spot to fill in their defense after releasing right corner Sunil Narwal. The experienced Abozar Mighani should be the right fit for the side. The Iranian right corner defender had another decent season, scoring 40 tackle points in 22 matches for the Bengal Warriors. While he hasn't quite repeated his heroics from his Gujarat Giants days, he remains a reliable campaigner.
The Pirates could do with his experience in leading the side, with the side needing a captain after the release of Prashanth Kumar Rai. Abozar could also strike up a good partnership and understanding with star defender and fellow Iranian Mohammadreza 'Shadlou' Chiyaneh in the left corner.
Abozar isn't the highly sought-after player he once was, and that's reflected by the reduction in the price the Bengal Warriors paid for him at the 2021 PKL Auction. The Patna Pirates should be able to snap him up without burning a hole in their purse. He should be among their top targets at the auction.
