Pro Kabaddi League Season 1 captains - Where are they now?
Pro Kabaddi League is one of the most followed sports tournaments in India. Mashal Sports launched the league in the year 2014, with eight franchises - Jaipur Pink Panthers, U Mumba, Patna Pirates, Bengal Warriors, Dabang Delhi KC, Bengaluru Bulls, Telugu Titans and Puneri Paltan - competing against each other in an IPL-style competition.
Over the years, the league's popularity has increased considerably. There are 12 teams in the league now. Gujarat Giants, Haryana Steelers, Tamil Thalaivas and UP Yoddhas joined the tournament in 2017.
While the recent Pro Kabaddi League seasons will be fresh in the minds of the fans, we look back at the inaugural edition. Here's a list of eight captains of Pro Kabaddi League season one and where they are now.
#1 Bengal Warriors captain - Nilesh Shinde
Nilesh Shinde was the skipper of Bengal Warriors in the first season of the Pro Kabbadi League. Under his leadership, the team finished seventh in the points table. Bengal recorded four wins, nine losses and a draw under Shinde's captaincy.
The defender has been away from the PKL for quite some time now. He was in the headlines in 2017 for beating up a rival team's fan.
#2 Bengaluru Bulls captain - Manjeet Chhillar
Manjeet Chhillar led the Bengaluru Bulls to the semi-finals in the first season of the Pro Kabaddi League. The all-rounder played one more season for the Bulls before switching to Puneri Paltan. His last appearance in PKL came in 2021-22, where he won the trophy with Dabang Delhi KC.
Earlier this year, Telugu Titans appointed Chhillar as their assistant coach for the ninth season of PKL.
#3 Dabang Delhi KC captain - Jasmer Singh
Jasmer Singh captained Dabang Delhi KC in the first season when they finished sixth in the standings that season with five wins in 14 matches.
Singh played a few more seasons in the PKL, with his last appearance coming in 2018 for Bengaluru Bulls. There has been no update on his recent whereabouts.
#4 Jaipur Pink Panthers captain - Navneet Gautam
Defender Navneet Gautam was the first player to win the Pro Kabaddi League championship as captain. Under his leadership, Jaipur topped the standings with 10 wins in 14 matches. They defeated U Mumba in the final to win the title.
Gautam played his last season in 2017 for Jaipur. He has been away from the PKL since then.
#5 Patna Pirates captain - Rakesh Kumar
Rakesh Kumar was one of the most expensive signings at the inaugural PKL auction. Patna Pirates signed him for ₹12.8 lakh and named him their captain. Kumar led Patna to the semi-finals.
The all-rounder played his last PKL season in 2017 for Telugu Titans. He then became the head coach of Haryana Steelers but was replaced by Manpreet Singh earlier this year.
#6 Puneri Paltan captain - Wazir Singh
Wazir Singh captained Puneri Paltan in the 2014 PKL season. Pune took the wooden spoon home that season with only two wins in 14 matches.
Singh played a few more seasons for Pune before switching to Dabang Delhi KC and then to Haryana Steelers. His last PKL appearance came in 2018 for Haryana.
#7 U Mumba captain - Anup Kumar
Anup Kumar guided U Mumba to the Pro Kabaddi League final in 2014. The Mumbai-based franchise won eight matches in the league round and finished second. They lost against Jaipur Pink Panthers in the final.
Kumar played his last PKL season for Jaipur in 2018. He became the head coach of Puneri Paltan in 2019 but was replaced by BC Ramesh this year. Kumar now works as a kabaddi expert for Star Sports.
#8 Telugu Titans captain - Rajaguru Subramanian
Former Indian defender Rajaguru Subramanian captained the Telugu Titans in the inaugural season. The Titans narrowly missed out on the semi-finals as they finished fifth with 42 points in 15 matches.
Subramanian played his last Pro Kabaddi League season for U Mumba in season seven and became the team's coach in season eight. Anil Chhaprana replaced him as the head coach this year.