The Bengal Warriors have announced their captain for the latest Pro Kabaddi League Season 5 via social media and it will be former U Mumba star Surjeet Singh who will lead the side from Kolkata this time around. One of the best cover defenders in the world, Surjeet will look to lead the Warriors to their first-ever PKL title.
The new season promises to be bigger and better than ever, with 12 teams facing off in 138 matches across three months. Four new teams were added this time around – from the states of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu. The format for this edition will be a unique one – which will see teams divided into two zones of six each and contesting intra-zonal, inter-zonal and wild-card matches. The top six teams in the standings will qualify for the playoffs.
Related: Pro Kabaddi 2017 Season 5: Kabaddi players and their cricketer equivalents
Surjeet, who hails from the Services, is a well-renowned defender and is known for his powerful tackling. He has many tricks up his sleeve – from solo body blocks to chain tackles with the support of his teammates. He was a key member of the U Mumba side from Season 2 that lifted the title and is considered to be the best PKL side to ever be assembled.
It was a difficult choice for the Warriors to make their pick, given the amount of experienced and senior players in their lineup. They are genuine title contenders if they can last the distance after an intelligent show at the player auctions in May.
In the raiding department, they are well-stocked with some top notch attackers. Korean star and fan favourite Jang Kun Lee was one of the players in the fray for the captain’s armband having led his national team at the World Cup last year. Maninder Singh and Wazir Singh are both high-quality raiders and have tonnes of top-level experience.
Their defense will be led by Surjeet himself and he will have another senior player by his side on the mat in the form of Ran Singh, who is another player suited for the leader’s role and can take charge in case Surjeet is not on the mat.
Here is the Bengal squad:
Jang-Kun Lee (Raider), Deepak Narwal (Raider), Anil Kumar (Raider), Kuldeep (Raider), Maninder Singh (Raider), Virender Wazir Singh (Raider), Vinod Kumar (Raider), Ameares Mondal (Defender), Sandeep Malik (Defender), Surjeet (Defender), Young Chang Ko (Defender), Rahul Kumar (Defender), Shashank Wankhede (Defender), Bhupender Singh (All-Rounder), Ran Singh (All-Rounder), Ravindra Ramesh Kumawat (All-Rounder), Srikanth Tewthia (All-Rounder), Vikash (All-Rounder)
Also read: Pro Kabaddi 2017 Season 5: Five teams with the weakest defence
