Pro Kabaddi League Season 7 Auctions: 5 players who Patna Pirates must target
Patna Pirates ended their 3-season winning streak with a league-stage finish in PKL 6 as the U.P Yoddha narrowly edged them out for a place in the knockouts. Patna's defensive woes was the primary reason for their poor season. Another issue was the fact that no raider was able to support Pardeep Narwal who was the lone ranger for the side in the season.
The side made some surprising retention choices at the auction and chose to retain Tushar Patil, Jawahar Dagar, Vikas Jaglan and Pardeep Narwal ahead of the auction. Patna chose not to retain Jaideep, their best defender from last season, who averaged 2.9 points per match and this clearly showcases Patna's defending problems to everyone.
With the auction coming up on 8th and 9th April, Patna will look to cash in and get the best players on board.
Let's take a look at 5 players who Patna Pirates must target this season at the auction.
Honorable mentions
1) Jaideep- The left corner defender did a decent job last season and showed his composure in some tight situations and deserved to be retained more than Jawahar Dagar. He can be bought again by Patna if they choose to do so and is a good option.
2) Abozar Mighani- Abozar Mighani is one of the best right corners in the business and was pursued relentlessly by the Telugu Titans at the auction before getting him. The Iranian did an average job and scored 56 points last season. His experience may prove to be a game-changer for Patna and is a good option but he won't be top on Patna's priority list.
#5 Naveen Kumar (Dabang Delhi KC)
Matches Played: 22 | Total Points: 177
Young Naveen Kumar did a splendid job for Dabang Delhi KC last season and shouldered the raiding responsibilities. The 18-year old combined well with Chandran Ranjit to score 177 points last season. He became the youngest player to feature in the Pro Kabaddi League and was also the youngest player to score a Super 10.
Patna have always been a team which has supported young talents and groomed the likes of Pardeep Narwal, Rohit Kumar and Manjeet into talented raiders. If Naveen Kumar is acquired by Patna, he can learn a lot from Pardeep while partnering him and sharing the raiding duties. He's nimble-footed and is very quick across the mat and possesses great finesse, whilst being a great exponent of the running hand touch.
It was actually a surprise to see the young talent released by Delhi but Patna should be quick to snap up this wonder-kid at the auction.