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The much-awaited fifth season of the Pro Kabaddi League is slated for a July start and promises to be bigger than ever. With the addition of four new teams, this season will feature over 130 matches played over a period of over three months.
The player auction will take place on Monday i.e. May 22 and is sure to see some huge bids for the biggest names in the sport, with 12 teams vying for the best raiders, defenders and all-rounders. Before it begins, the existing teams have been allowed to retain one player each.
The list of retained players has been revealed and while there have been some obvious picks from a few teams, others have been a little surprising at the very least. It certainly spices things up with the auction on the horizon and it will be fascinating to see how the owners and coaches will strategize and build their teams.
Here are the players retained by the eight teams:
Patna Pirates
The defending champions from the last two seasons, the Pirates have retained star raider Pardeep Narwal. Not a surprising pick by the side, as the ‘Dubki King’ has been their mainstay and has brought in valuable raid points in almost every match.
Telugu Titans
No surprises here, either. The highest raid point scorer over the four seasons, Rahul Chaudhari, has been retained by the Titans. He has been a key part of the side since the start of the league three years ago and was part of the side that won the inaugural World Cup.
Jaipur Pink Panthers
A shocker here! The runners up from last season have chosen not to retain any player. Their squad was filled with talent, from youngsters Rajesh Narwal and Amit Hooda to seasoned campaigners like Jasvir Singh and Shabeer Bapu.
Puneri Paltan
The side from Pune have retained another star from India’s WC campaign but to our surprise, it’s not Manjeet Chhillar or Ajay Thakur. Instead, the Paltan have chosen to keep Deepak Niwas Hooda and understandably so, given his young age and his abilities in attack as well as defense.
U Mumba
The side from Mumbai reached the finals in season two and three, and last campaign, they missed out on a place in the semifinals. They have retained ‘Bonus ka Badshah’ Anup Kumar, who led India to victory in the World Cup.
Bengaluru Bulls
The biggest surprise from the eight teams has been sprung by the Bulls. Instead of keeping star defender and most expensive player in PKL history Mohit Chhillar, they have opted to retain youngster Ashish Sangwan, who is handy in attack and defense.
Dabang Delhi
Only two teams have retained foreign players and the first of them is the Delhi side, as they have chosen to retain all-rounder Meyraj Sheykh. He had been the talisman for the Delhi side last season and the only player in the side who actually looked threatening. No surprise that he has been chosen over the likes of Kashiling Adake and Sachin Shingade.
Bengal Warriors
They finished last in season four and have retained their star player Jang Kun Lee. The Korean raider has won over the hearts of kabaddi fans with his attacking style of play and it’s easy to see why he has been retained.
