PKL Auction 2021: 5 things to watch out for
PKL Auction 2021 will begin today at 6:30 PM IST with the New Young Players Draft. The auction will continue tomorrow with two sessions.
In the afternoon session, teams will bid for overseas players, and in the evening session, the 'A' category players will be up for grabs.
PKL Auction 2021 will culminate the day after tomorrow. Category 'B', 'C', 'D' and unallocated players will be auctioned in the final session.
The entire Kabaddi universe is excited to see how their favorite teams line up after PKL Auction 2021. In this listicle, we will look at the five things to watch out for over the next three days.
1. Pardeep Narwal makes his PKL Auction debut
Pardeep Narwal's release stunned Kabaddi fans across the world. The Patna Pirates released their captain, although he amassed more than 300 raid points in the previous edition of the Pro Kabaddi League.
Narwal is the most successful raider in the league's history, and it should not be a surprise if he is the most expensive player at PKL Auction 2021.
It will be exciting to see which team snaps up the services of the 'Dubki King'.
2. Tamil Thalaivas' strategy after finishing last in the previous 3 seasons
Tamil Thalaivas joined the Pro Kabaddi League in Season 5. The Chennai-based franchise have formed strong squads, but they have finished last in the standings in every season they have played.
Last season, they had the likes of Ajay Thakur, Rahul Chaudhari, Manjeet Chhillar, Mohit Chhillar, Ran Singh and Shabeer Bappu in the squad. Still, Tamil Thalaivas took the wooden spoon home.
They have retained only three Existing New Young Players before PKL Auction 2021. All eyes will be on the Chennai-based franchise over the next three days.
3. Youth or experience - What will teams prefer?
As mentioned ahead, Tamil Thalaivas failed in the previous season despite having some of the biggest names in the Kabaddi world in their team. Hence, the franchises will likely invest more in youth at PKL Auction 2021.
Franchises like Gujarat Giants have shown that a team can reach the final of the tournament if they back talented youngsters.
4. Will the Crorepatis have the same demand?
The 'Crorepati' club of the Pro Kabaddi League has seven names so far. However, it seems the pressure of the price tag impacted those players, as most of them could not perform at their best after gaining big contracts.
It will be interesting to see how much the franchises bid for the likes of Monu Goyat, Deepak Niwas Hooda, Rahul Chaudhari, Nitin Tomar, Rishank Devadiga and Siddharth Desai at PKL Auction 2021.
5. How many players will emerge as 'Crorepatis' from PKL Auction 2021?
Although PKL Auction 2021 seems to be the biggest one in the league's history, some fans believe the franchises will not spend big on just one player. Splurging a large amount for one player's services has impacted the team's balance.
In the previous seasons, the Telugu Titans, the Haryana Steelers and the Jaipur Pink Panthers struggled with their team combinations after offering a contract worth more than ₹1 crore to one of the players in their squads.
Hence, it will be intriguing to see how many 'Crorepatis' emerge this year.