Haryana Steelers announce D. Cheralathan as Team Captain

Aiming to lift the Pro Kabaddi League title for the first time in their history, the Haryana Steelers on Wednesday announced Panchkula as their Official Centre for the seventh season of the competition. The JSW Sports-owned franchise also announced the experienced defender Dharmaraj Cheralathan as their Team Captain for the upcoming season.

The Haryana Steelers were formed in 2017, and qualified for the play-offs in their first season, and finished sixth in Zone A in their second season. Based out of the city of Sonipat previously, Haryana Steelers have decided to shift base to Panchkula in order to continue in their pursuit of popularizing the sport throughout the state of Haryana. Organisers of Pro Kabaddi League had earlier announced Panchkula as a new venue where a total of 11 league matches will take place.

The franchise, into their third season of the Pro Kabaddi League, and under new Coach Rakesh Kumar, chose 44-year-old Dharmaraj Cheralathan as the Team Captain and will hope that his immense experience and understanding of the game can help their team qualify for the playoffs of the competition.

One of India’s most successful kabaddi players who was also a part of India’s 2016 Kabaddi World Cup-winning team, Dharmaraj Cheralathan, was present at the occasion in Panchkula, and spoke about the prospects of leading the Haryana Steelers. “I am very proud and happy to be given the captaincy of the Haryana Steelers. We have a great bunch of players in our team, and I look forward to leading the team this season. It is a great honour for me to be able to represent the Steelers and have the opportunity of contributing in our team’s ambition of lifting the Pro Kabaddi League trophy this season,” said the 44-year-old defender from Tamil Nadu.

Haryana Steelers’ CEO, Mustafa Ghouse, who was also present on the occasion, said he was delighted with the decision to choose Panchkula as their Official Centre. “Kabaddi is a sport that is followed throughout the state of Haryana, and we wanted to make sure that we give our fans in Panchkula also the opportunity to experience world-class action. Our team is scheduled to play four matches in the city this season, and we look forward to our fans coming to the stadium to see their favourite players perform. I am also delighted to announce that Dharmaraj Cheralathan will be captaining the team. His experience and knowledge will be of immense help to everyone at the franchise, and I would like to wish him and the team all the very best for the season ahead,” said Ghouse.

Haryana Steelers will start their Pro Kabaddi League season against Puneri Paltan on Monday, 22nd July 2019 at 20.30hrs IST at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium in Hyderabad.