Pro Kabaddi League: Top 5 memorable raiding performances in PKL history
Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) was established in 2014 by Mashal Sports to create a platform for Indian Kabaddi athletes to make it big on the national as well as the world stage.
Within a span of few years since the inception, the Pro Kabaddi League has managed to become the second most-watched and followed sporting leagues in India. It has continued to grow season by season with the addition of four franchises from Season 5 as an increase from the original eight franchises since the beginning of the competition.
One of the major factors in the rise of viewership and following of the sport and the Pro Kabaddi League in the country have been the raiders of the game. The attackers in the Kabaddi squad who do the bulk of scoring points for their team with their flashy moves coupled with speed, agility, and strength on the mat.
In this article, we take a look at five of the top individual raiding performances delivered by some of the best raiders that the Pro Kabaddi League stage has witnessed.
5 best Pro Kabaddi raiding performances
#5 Pawan Kumar Sehrawat (29 Points) - Bengaluru Bulls vs Bengal Warriors
Pawan Kumar Sehrawat has undoubtedly established himself as the anchor of the Bengaluru Bulls' attack over the past couple of seasons with his dominant and consistent raiding performances on the mat.
One such performance was delivered by the 'High Flyer' Sehrawat in a league encounter against eventual Pro Kabaddi League Season 7 champions Bengal Warriors.
Bengal Warriors were in a cruising position at 14 - 4 in the first half of the match after inflicting an All-out on the Bulls. However, Pawan Sehrawat pulled off a spectacular seven-raid run to help the Bulls mount a comeback in the first half. He managed to score five points in his initial five raids and added four in the last two raids of the run as the Bulls cut the deficit down to just two points at the end of the half.
Pawan continued to strike in the second and helped his side overcome another 10 point deficit in the second half to eventually clinch the match by a solitary point. He finished with a total 29 raid points from 30 raids and was the match-winner for his side yet again in the Pro Kabaddi.
#4 Rohit Kumar (30 Points) - Bengaluru Bulls vs UP Yoddha
Bengaluru Bulls' skipper Rohit Kumar created history back in the Pro Kabaddi League Season 5 when he became the first raider to breach the 30 raid points mark.
Rohit achieved this feat when the Bulls faced off agains the UP Yoddha in a league encounter at the Balewadi Sports Complex in Pune, Maharashtra. With his effort, the Bulls managed to inflict a crushing 64 - 24 defeat on the Yoddhas.
Rohit Kumar was in bright touch from the get go in this match and began scoring briskly for the Bulls as they dominated proceedings on the mat. They had inflicted two All Outs on the Yoddhas in the first half as they led 27 - 10 at the break.
The Bulls skipper even managed to get a Super Tackle to his credit in the second half as his efforts on the attacking front continued to bear fruit. Despite the clear dominance, Rohit did not take his foot off the pedal and managed to break the 30 raid points mark in the final raid of the match creating history. He finished with 25 touch points and 5 bonus points in a total attempted 31 raids on the night.