Delhi, Aug 12 (IANS) Pro Kabaddi League season 8 champions Dabang Delhi K.C. will be eager to reclaim the PKL title after crashing out in the semifinals last season. They have been one of the most consistent teams in recent years and have reached the Playoffs in each of the last six PKL seasons.
PKL Season 12 will see Dabang Delhi K.C. continue with Joginder Narwal as their head coach. Under his tutelage, Dabang Delhi K.C. was one of the most dominant teams last campaign.
With 13 wins in 22 games, the Delhi-based outfit finished second in the PKL Season 11 standings with 81 points, before they went down to Patna Pirates in the semi-finals.
Dabang Delhi K.C. were the busiest at the PKL Season 12 Player Auction as they added 16 players in the two-day event. Having spent Rs 4.899 crore, Dabang Delhi assembled a strong squad that covered most of their bases.
Here’s a closer look at the strengths and weaknesses of Dabang Delhi K.C. ahead of PKL Season 12.
Dabang Delhi’s biggest strength has to be the quality and experience of the raiders and defenders in their squad. The Pro Kabaddi Season 8 winners used their Final Bid Match (FBM) card at the PKL Season 12 auction to retain their star raider Ashu Malik for two seasons for a whopping Rs 1.90 crore.
Dabang Delhi have added talented raider Neeraj Narwal for Rs 32.60 lakh and acquired the services of experienced raider Ajinkya Ashok Pawar for Rs 13 lakh at the auction.
Additionally, Dabang Delhi have roped in Fazel Atrachali, the most successful defender in Pro Kabaddi League history, at the Season 12 Player Auction for his base price of Rs 30 lakh. The Iranian left corner is the first player to reach 500 tackle points in Pro Kabaddi League and has already racked up 545 tackle points in 188 games so far.
Dabang Delhi K.C. have also snapped up seasoned right cover Surjeet Singh for Rs 20 lakh, added Iranian right corner Amir Hossein Bastami for Rs 30 lakh, and signed experienced left corner Saurabh Nandal for Rs 13 lakh to bolster their defensive unit.
While Dabang Delhi K.C. have assembled a formidable squad on paper, the departure of their talismanic captain and star raider Naveen Kumar ahead of PKL Season 12 cannot be overlooked. Naveen, who was an integral member of Dabang Delhi since 2018, guided the team to their maiden Pro Kabaddi title in 2022. Representing the franchise, Naveen also won the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award in back-to-back editions in Season 7 and 8. He earlier forged a successful partnership with Ashu Malik and created havoc in the opposition’s defence.
Furthermore, Dabang Delhi may have to deal with the lack of quality all-rounders in their squad in the upcoming season. Amit, Ashish Kumar Sangwan, Naveen and Arkam Shaikh are the only recognised all-rounders in their squad, and they will need to produce impactful performances.
Pro Kabaddi Season 12 will be a great opportunity for players like Neeraj Narwal, Anil Gurjar, Mohit, Vijay and Akshit to step up and make the most of the chances they could receive in the Dabang Delhi raiding unit. While accomplished raider Ashu Malik will once again lead their attack, he will need support from other talented raiders if Dabang Delhi are to clinch the PKL Season 12 title.
After a below-par campaign with Bengal Warriorz last season, Iranian defender Fazel Atrachali will be hoping to return to his best and guide Dabang Delhi K.C. to PKL glory.
A lot of how Dabang Delhi season unfolds could also depend on the form of Ashu Malik. Ashu has been one of the leading raiders in the league and has accumulated 538 raid points in the last 46 matches of the previous two seasons.
Their squad also lacks quality all-rounders that could pose a significant area of concern to the team’s fortunes in the upcoming Pro Kabaddi season.
–IANS
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