Pro Kabaddi 2019: Best Playing 7 of the Tournament
The seventh edition of Pro Kabaddi came to a thrilling end as the Bengal Warriors defeated Dabang Delhi K.C. by a 39-34 margin to clinch their maiden title at the EKA Arena by TransStadia, Ahmedabad in the summit clash of the season.
Mohammad Nabibakhsh finished as the leading point-scorer for the Bengal Warriors as the Iranian pick up nine raid points, and his form was a major driving factor behind his side's maiden PKL title win.
Sukesh Hegde scored seven raid points, and Ravindra Kumawat's six raid points as a substitute helped the Warriors maintain domination all through the contest. With both teams tied on 17-17 at half-time, the Warriors stood tall maintain the lead and win the contest, despite Naveen Kumar's 18 points.
Looking at the players' overall performance and their vital contributions to their teams, let's take a look at the best playing seven of the tournament.
Right Corner - Nitesh Kumar (UP Yoddha)
Nitesh Kumar emerged as a stalwart for the UP Yoddha this season and followed up his 100-tackle point effort from last season. The corner combination of Nitesh - Sumit went on to score 152 tackle points combined, which is the most by any duo this season.
He had a rough start to the season, with just 23 tackle points in the first 11 matches. However, he soon found his bearings and went on to score 52 tackle points in the next 12 outings at an average of 4.3 tackle points with six High 5s to his name. The ankle hold specialist improved his blocks and thigh holds that played a crucial role in UP Yoddha's eight wins ahead of the playoffs.
Nitesh ended his campaign as the third-best defender of the season with 75 tackle points in 23 total matches this season. He also marshalled his troops extremely well all throughout the season and essayed his role as captain to perfection.