"No pressure of price tag" - Meetu Sharma ready to justify ₹93 lakh PKL contract by guiding Dabang Delhi KC to the trophy
Meetu Sharma will represent Dabang Delhi KC in the upcoming Pro Kabaddi League season. The Delhi-based franchise splurged ₹93 lakh to rope in the young raider, who played for the Haryana Steelers in the last two editions of PKL.
Sharma was quite impressive in PKL 9, where he finished with 137 points to his name. He scored 75 points in 16 matches of season eight and will want to perform even better for Dabang Delhi KC in the upcoming tournament.
Despite Sharma's consistent performances for the Haryana Steelers, the team could not qualify for the playoffs. This year, his goal is to not only take his team to the playoffs but also win the championship.
With the likes of Naveen Kumar, Manjeet and Ashu Malik present in the squad, Delhi is among the top contenders to win the PKL trophy in the 2023/24 season.
Before they start their PKL 10 campaign against Tamil Thalaivas on December 3 in Ahmedabad, the team's new signing, Meetu Sharma, spoke with Sportskeeda in an exclusive chat. Here are the excerpts.
Excerpts from Meetu Sharma's exclusive interview with Sportskeeda:
Q. You have joined Dabang Delhi KC for PKL 10. How excited are you?
Meetu Sharma: I am very excited. Dabang Delhi KC signed me. I am really happy. I will try to perform well.
Q. You were with Haryana Steelers last season. Now, you are playing for Dabang Delhi KC. Tell us about the difference in the atmosphere of the two teams.
Meetu Sharma: There is no major difference in the atmosphere of the two teams, but you can say that the coaching style is slightly different. The way we practice here is different.
Q. Will there be any pressure of the price tag?
Meetu Sharma: No pressure of the price tag. The team management has shown faith in me. I will try to perform well.
Q. What is the difference of mindset when you know you are in the starting seven and when you are a substitute on the bench?
Meetu Sharma: We have to keep ourselves ready. Coach sir tells us before only if we are there in the starting seven. Even if we are on the bench, we have to warm up well and keep ourselves ready because the team may need us at any time.
Q. Any specific goals you have set for yourself in PKL 10?
Meetu: When I played for Haryana Steelers, we could not qualify for playoffs. So, the goal is to win the trophy. We want the gold. I want to perform well for the team. If I play well, records are meant to be broken.
Q. Manpreet Singh praised you a lot even before you played for Haryana Steelers. Did your game change after spending time with him?
Meetu: I have played with Manpreet sir before for the ONGC team and then played under him in Pro Kabaddi League. So, if I made any mistakes, he would help me a lot. What I could not do there, I want to do for Delhi.