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The extravagant Pro Kabaddi League season 6, which commenced on the 7th of October, is now about to witness the fiercest matches in the history of PKL as the playoff week is just about to kick-off. Teams will face some serious competition in the remaining matches.
Twelve franchises from all across the nation toiled hard to clinch the celebrated trophy of PKL. Each team was given a specific place either in Zone A or B, out of which only top three teams from each of the zones have qualified for the playoffs.
This season has been pretty much a shocker for everyone. Fans saw veteran players like Anup Kumar and Jasmer Singh Gulia bid adieu to PKL and professional Kabaddi. Patna Pirates not qualifying for the playoffs for the first time in five seasons was equally stupefying news.
Pawan Sehrawat, the wizard from the South, has surpassed Pardeep Narwal in the best raiders' list. Dabang Delhi, who was famous for being on the table bottom, displayed a gobsmacking game and qualified for the playoffs for the very first time in the history of PKL.
After almost three months of working their fingers to the bone, here is a detailed list of teams who have made their way to the playoffs.
Zone A:
#1. Gujarat Fortune Giants
These Gujarati Chokros from Gujarat Fortune Giants made a cracking debut in season 5 and played the finals against Patna Pirates. Giving us a repeat performance this season, the Giants have again qualified for the playoffs that too on the top of their group table.
Everybody was unsure of Manpreet Singh's team selection as there was a lack of experience in the team. Some new youngsters were introduced but nobody expected them to perform.
Considering some stats here, Gujarat has won a total of 17 matches out of 22 with just three losses! An amazing feat indeed, they have won the most number of matches in PKL 6.
Talking of players, a special mention should be given to Sachin, who is pretty much similar to the "cricket waala Sachin" performance wise, Mahendra Ganesh Rajput, the iconic duo of Parvesh Bhainswal and Sunil Kumar, Ruturaj Koravi, Ajay Kumar, Dong Geon Lee, K. Prapanjan and Hadi Ostorak.
Every member has played with utmost excellence this season. They totally deserved a place in the playoffs and might end up winning the league as well!
#2. U Mumba
The champions of season 2 of PKL have yet again qualified for the season 6 playoffs. Coach Gholamreza Mazandarani, the national coach of Iran, who mentored his team to further win the Asian Games 2018 gold in Kabaddi, once again did an excellent job with his team.
U Mumba dominated over every team since their very first faceoff and became the first team to qualify for the playoffs. They have won 15 matches out of 22 with two ties and just five losses.
The players on the team are unbelievably strong and intricately skilled. The horror caused by Fazel Atrachali in the mind of the oppositions' raiders is not new. He has been famous for terrorizing raiders with his bold defensive skills.
Siddharth Desai, the newcomer, literally blew the minds of every kabaddi fan as he scored a total of 211 raid points and is currently sitting on the third position of the best raiders' list.
Rohit Baliyan was the perfect companion for Siddharth as he helped the team pitch in a good number of points. Other players like Vinod Kumar, Abhishek Singh, Abolfazl Maghsoudlou, Darshan Kadian, Surender Singh, Hadi Tajik, and Dharmaraj Cheralathan also did a tremendous job.
#3. Dabang Delhi K.C.
Season 6 has to be Dabang Delhi's favorite season as they qualified for the playoffs for the very first time in the history of PKL. Every fan has been waiting for this moment since season 1 of the league.
Having some experienced players like Meraj Sheykh, Rajesh Narwal, Joginder Narwal and Ravinder Pahal on the team worked like magic. We were extremely lucky to witness some amazing raids and tackles from these renowned players.
Sterling youngster Naveen Kumar has done a great job in the league so far. Scoring multiple points and super tens is literally a norm for him. He has been grabbing the headlines ever since he stepped on the mat for the first time.
Other players like Chandran Ranjit, Pawan Kadian, Vishal Mane, Viraj Langde and Yogesh Hooda have massively contributed to the team as well. We all have high hopes for Delhi and it will be exciting to see the team winning the trophy.
Zone B
#1. Bengaluru Bulls
Bengaluru Bulls, the table toppers of Zone B became the first team to qualify from its group. We are getting some serious season 2 vibes from the current team. Bulls have won a total of 13 matches out of 22 with 7 losses and 2 ties.
Talking of the players, we have our very own Rohit Kumar, who has knocked the defenders off their heels, Pawan Sehrawat, whom we can't explain in words because he has been showing a spectacular game throughout.
Yes, and this lookalike of Rohit Kumar has surpassed Pardeep Narwal and is currently the best raider of season 6 with 236 points.
Other players like Kashiling Adake, Mahender Singh, Raju Lal Choudhary, Ashish Kumar, and Amit Sheoran have done a great job. The question is, will they win this season? Well, we hope for the best!
#2. Bengal Warriors
Bengal Warriors have been giving us a great performance each season. Well, this season is no different. They have yet again successfully qualified for the playoffs. Bengal was one of the top four teams in season 3 and since then, they have never looked back.
They have won a total of 12 matches out of 22 with 8 losses and 2 ties in total. Talking of the players, we have got Maninder Singh, who is an epitome of excellence. This man came after three seasons with a killer comeback.
Mani has scored a total of 198 points this season and currently stands on the fifth position on the best raiders' list. Then we have the mighty Ran Singh, who has shown his mind-boggling all-round skills on the mat. Captain Surjeet Narwal has also done a top-notch job.
Amit Nagar, Jang Kun Lee, Mahesh Goud, Ziaur Rahman, Ameares Mondal, Bhupender Singh, Baldev Singh, and Shrikant Tewthia also need to get credit for team's success. All we have to see is if these players can help Bengal win that trophy.
#3. U.P. Yoddha
Hum hai UP Yoddhas! Yes, that's the anthem of UP Yoddha. The Yoddhas have really done a commendable job this season. Even though the auctions did not go well for the squad, the team managed to keep up an A-game in most of their matches.
UP's qualification was at stake as they qualified in their last match. That would be the most memorable match for them, as they managed to win the match from Bengal Warriors in order to clinch a position in the playoffs.
Their home-leg was pretty heart sinking as they did not win any match. Shrikant Jadhav was injured mid-season but his comeback proved to be the game changer for the team. Nitesh Kumar also put his best performance ahead and is the best defender in the sixth edition of the league so far with 83 points.
The 'crorepati' Rishank Devadiga was perfect on the mat as he was sublime with his skills. Players like Jeeva Kumar, Sachin Kumar, and Prashanth Kumar Rai also did an applaudable job.
The gates for playoffs were closed for Patna Pirates as the Yoddhas won their last match against the Warriors. All in all, we can safely say that UP deserved a place in the playoffs.
