5 Players for whom PKL8 will be a Do-Or-Die Season
Image - Pro Kabaddi
Ambarish Upadhyay
Pro Kabaddi League Season 8 auction for the players in categories B, C, and D took place on August 31.The auction was full of excitement where some new faces got high price in the auction while some veterans of the game went shockingly unsold. There was a major downfall in the price value of some of the renowned faces of the Pro Kabaddi League. Some of the poster boys were even not considered to be retained by their last season’s franchises.
In this article we discuss about the raiders for whom Season 8 will possibly be a Do-or-Die season.
1. RAHUL CHAUDHARI
Also known as ‘Showman’ of the league, Rahul has earned this name by his fearless & flamboyant raiding style. Rahul is the 2nd highest raid points scorer of the league.
Rahul had his best raiding career during his Telugu Titans days where he scored around 670+ raid points and was a nightmare for the defenders.
Unfortunately, from the last two seasons the ‘Showman’ wasn’t able to steal the show as he wasn’t able to maintain the consistency. Rahul always played as a lead raider for the team but due to his bad form he was demoted as a second raider in season 7. He was also benched for a few matches. Rahul managed to score only 130 raid points in his PKL 7 campaign & was released by Tamil Thalaivas before PKL 8.
Rahul is signed by Puneri Paltan for PKL 8, which will be a must perform season for the ‘Showman’.
2. ROHIT KUMAR
The ‘Captain Cool’ Rohit was awarded the Most Valuable Player award in his debut season (PKL 3 for Patna Pirates). He became the first player to score more than 30 raid points in a single game (32 raid points against UP Yoddha in PKL 5). Over the years he has proven his leadership ability as well in the game. Rohit successfully led Bengaluru Bulls to their maiden PKL title win (PKL 6).
But from the last two seasons, Rohit lacked consistency and even missed a few games due to his back injury. The graph of his raid points has decreased from the last 2 seasons. Considering the bad form, The Bulls released their captain before PKL 8. Rohit is signed by Telugu Titans for PKL8, where he will be raiding alongside Bahubali Siddharth Desai, it would be interesting to watch whether Rohit will regain his form in PKL 8 or not.
3. NITIN TOMAR
Known for his Do-or-Die raid abilities, his game has evolved over the years with him polishing his all-round skills along the way. Nitin led U.P. Yoddha in their debut VIVO Pro Kabaddi season.
In Season 5, he scored 177 points and was the highest scorer for his side, U.P. Yoddha.
Nitin was sold at a record price of 1.15 crore rupees in PKL6 to Puneri Paltan but wasn’t able to justify his price tag as he wasn’t able to contribute much for the team. The inconsistent form continued in PKL7 also where injuries affected his game.
Nitin is roped in back by Puneri Paltan for PKL 8, the team management has shown faith on his skills, it would surely be a Do or Die season for Nitin.
4. RISHANK DEVADIGA
Season 3 of VIVO Pro Kabaddi was Rishank’s most successful campaign where he finished second in the list of top raiders with 106 points from 16 matches.
His 28 points in a single game against Jaipur Pink Panthers in his first match as captain of U.P. Yoddha in Season 5 was his most impressive performance in the league.
Although having a remarkable raiding career, his graph decreased from the last two seasons where he wasn’t able to contribute much to his team.
Rishank was completely sidelined in the auction, later he was picked up at a base price of 20 lakh by Bengal Warriors in the last round. All eyes will be on him during PKL8 to check his performance.
5. MONU GOYAT
Monu was the find of the season for Patna Pirates in their Season 5 campaign. Season 5 was a tremendously successful season for him as he scored 191 points. He also played an important part in Patna’s title winning campaign in PKL5.
Monu was awarded for his PKL 5 performance, when he was signed at a huge price of 1.51 crores in PKL6 by Haryana Steelers. He was also given the responsibility to lead the team but unfortunately, he wasn’t able to do justice to his price tag & the leadership role.
Considering his inconsistent form of the last two seasons, he was sidelined in the auction. Later on Patna signed him on his base price of 20 lakhs. It would be a great chance for Monu Goyat to repeat his season 5 performance again in PKL8, otherwise it won’t be surprising if he remains unsold next season.