PKL Season 1 winner: Which team won Pro Kabaddi Season 1?
Jaipur Pink Panthers hold the record for winning the inaugural edition of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL). They became the first team to clinch the Pro Kabaddi title with their victory in season 1.
The Pink Panthers had a dream run, as they were the most consistent and dominant team throughout the season. They ended the league stage as the table toppers. Jaipur won 10 games, lost three and tied one, picking up 54 points from 14 games.
They went on to beat U Mumba in the final, 35-24. Maninder Singh, who represented Jaipur in his debut PKL season, top-scored in the final with 10 points. Rajesh Narwal (six points) and Jasvir Singh (four points) were the other notable contributors for Jaipur.
Earlier, they hammered the Patna Pirates to inflict a one-sided victory in the first semifinal. The trio of Jasvir Singh (eight points), Rajesh Narwal (eight points) and Maninder (six points) were their top performers in the semifinal.
With the triumph, Pink Panthers' Navneet Gautam, an Arjuna awardee and two-time gold medal winner in the Asian Games, became the first player to win the PKL as a captain.
The Abhishek Bachchan-owned franchise, coached by Kasinathan Baskaran, hit the jackpot in their maiden Pro Kabaddi appearance. The Pink Panthers, having won their second title in season 9, are the defending champions currently.
After the Patna Pirates, they are the only other team to have won the PKL trophy at least twice.
Jaipur Pink Panthers' top performers from PKL Season 1
Maninder Singh, in his very first PKL season, put up a stellar show for the Pink Panthers. He emerged as their best raider, scoring 130 raid points from 16 games at an impressive average of 8.12 raid points per game. Moreover, he also finished as the third-best raider overall.
Jasvir Singh was their other player to cross the 100-point mark that season. He was their second-best raider with 106 raid points from 15 games. Jasvir maintained an average of 7.07 raid points throughout the season.
Rajesh Narwal had a successful tournament as well, scoring 72 raid points from 16 games. He picked up 26 tackle points.
Rohit Rana with 38 tackle points and Prashant Chavan with 32 tackle points finished the season as the fifth and seventh-best defenders overall, respectively. Ran Singh also made a vital contribution of 25 tackle points from 10 games for the Pink Panthers in season 1.