Pro Kabaddi League Season 5: 5 players who should have been retained
The fifth season of the Pro Kabaddi League is all set to get underway in July this year and will be bigger than ever. This edition will feature four additional teams, one of which will be owned by cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar.
It will surpass all sporting leagues in the country, including the Indian Premier League (IPL), as it will cover teams from 11 states and will be over three months long with 130+ matches. All 12 teams will look to build from scratch as players will go under the hammer on Monday.
However, eight of the existing teams have been allowed to retain one player each and there have been some surprising picks. The Jaipur Pink Panthers have chosen not to retain any player and for the other teams, the situation is as such.
| Team | Player |
|---|---|
| U Mumba | Anup Kumar |
| Patna Pirates | Pardeep Narwal |
| Puneri Paltan | Deepak Hooda |
| Bengal Warriors | Jang Kun Lee |
| Bengaluru Bulls | Ashish Kumar |
| Telugu Titans | Rahul Chaudhuri |
| Dabang Delhi | Meyraj Sheykh |
There are many surprising names in the list and there are certainly other players who should have been retained. Let’s take a look at the top five:
#1 Mohit Chhillar
Mohit Chhillar hit the headlines after becoming the most expensive player at the auction prior to Season 4. The right corner defender was picked up for a whopping Rs 53 lakh by the Bengaluru Bulls and was part of the U Mumba side that romped to the title in Season 2.
The Bulls have chosen to retain Ashish Sangwan, which is a little surprising given Chhillar’s experience and pedigree. He was part of the India team that won the inaugural World Cup in Ahmedabad and made the right corner his own.
The side from Bengaluru finished a disappointing sixth last season and it is astonishing to see them part with one of the best defenders in the business.