Pro Kabaddi 2024 Auction: 3 Teams that need a lead raider at PKL Auction
The much-awaited Pro Kabaddi 2024 Auction will get underway tomorrow evening in Mumbai. It is the 11th edition of PKL, and all 12 teams will aim to form strong squads for the upcoming tournament.
More than 500 players from different parts of the globe have registered themselves for the Pro Kabaddi 2024 Auction. Ahead of the auction, each of the 12 teams received an option to retain the players they wished to keep from their previous season's squad.
Quite a few talented names have been retained. Most teams have tried to keep their settled defense lineup for the new season while letting go of the raiders. Some teams even ended up releasing their main raiders. Here's a list of three teams who will now have to hunt for a lead raider at the Pro Kabaddi 2024 Auction.
#1 Telugu Titans will try to sign a top name from the raiders' category at Pro Kabaddi 2024 Auction
Telugu Titans have been a part of the Pro Kabaddi League in all the seasons played so far. However, the Titans have never qualified for the playoffs. In fact, in the last three PKL seasons, they have finished 12th in the points table.
The Titans went all out to sign Pawan Sehrawat at the last auction. They splurged ₹2.605 crore for his services but failed to sign proper support players, which resulted in the team's failure.
Considering Pawan's hefty price, the Titans have unsurprisingly released him ahead of the Pro Kabaddi 2024 Auction. It will be interesting to see if the Titans go after Pawan's services once again and use the FBM card to re-sign him at the auction.
#2 Bengal Warriors
Bengal Warriors have let go of their captain and main raider Maninder Singh before the Pro Kabaddi 2024 Auction. Maninder had been the backbone of the Bengal raid attack ever since he came back to PKL in season five.
It is tough to imagine a Bengal Warriors lineup without Maninder because of his consistent performances for the team. Several other franchises will show interest in Maninder's services at the auction. If the Warriors fail to re-sign him, they will have to hunt for a new lead raider for the upcoming season.
#3 Patna Pirates
Three-time champions Patna Pirates have a habit of releasing their best players ahead of the auctions. The Pirates have released their best raider Sachin Tanwar and best defender Krishan Dhull from their season 10 squad.
Sachin's release has raised quite a few eyebrows in the Kabaddi universe because he finished sixth on the raiders' leaderboard last season with 171 raid points in 22 matches. Apart from that, Sachin played a pivotal role in Patna's journey to the final in season eight.
While Patna may have planned to use the FBM card for Sachin, it will be difficult to re-sign him at a bargain price. Many franchises may raise the peddle for Sachin at the Pro Kabaddi 2024 Auction. He could return with a multi-crore deal from the auction.