The 10th edition of the Pro Kabaddi League is just a day away. The PKL 2023 will begin with the contest between Gujarat Giants and Telugu Titans on 2nd December 2023.
All the 2 teams have now named the captain as they are all set to get their campaign underway. InsideSport takes a look at the list of captains for all the 12 teams in the upcoming season. The list will be in the order of last year’s league standings.
Sunil Kumar – Jaipur Pink Panthers
After leading the Jaipur Pink Panthers successfully in the last edition, in which the team won the title, Sunil Kumar will yet again be leading the Jaipur Pink Panthers in PKL 2023. The defender also was in terrific form last year as he scored 64 tackle points.
The right-cover defender will look to continue his form in the upcoming season. He will also have an eye of defending the crown as the Jaipur Pink Panthers enter PKL 2023 with a similar-looking side.
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Aslam Inamdar – Puneri Paltan
Young Aslam Inamdar has been handed-over the responsibilities of leading Puneri Paltan this year. He made his debut only in 2021. In the last two editions, he has emerged as a key raider scoring over 150 points in both the editions.
The youngster has big shoes to fill as he will be replacing Fazel Atrachali in the role. Inamdar was the stand-in skipper last year as Fazel joined the camp after the first few games last season. Under the captaincy of Atrachali, the team finished as runners-up in the last edition.
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Saurabh Nandal – Bengaluru Bulls
Young defender Saurabh Nandal has been rewarded with captaincy following his consistent performances in the last few years. He has scored more than 50 tackle points in the last three editions. It remains to be seen how he steps up the challenge of captaincy as Bengaluru eye their second title in the league.
Pardeep Narwal – UP Yoddhas
The league’s best raider Pardeep Narwal will lead the UP Yoddhas in PKL 2023. He replaces Nitesh Kumar in the role and under Pardeep, the team looks to win their maiden title in the Pro Kabaddi League. Pardeep Narwal has won the league as a captain way back in 2017 when he played for Patna Pirates.
Sagar Rathee – Tamil Thalaivas
Defender Sagar Rathee has been named as the official captain of the Tamil Thalalaivas. Sagar was the stand-in skipper for the team last year after Pawan Sehrawat was ruled out of the tournament due to injury.
Sagar also suffered a minor niggle last year and missed a few games. However, he did a good job as the team reached the playoffs for the first time. Sagar will once again hope to replicate a similar show in the upcoming edition of the league.
Naveen Kumar – Dabang Delhi
Naveen Kumar will continue in his role as the skipper of Dabang Delhi. Following the team’s title-winning season in 2018, Naveen was handed over the captaincy last year. The team managed to reach the playoffs. Naveen, who is the lead raider of the side will want to improve the show as the franchise eye their second Pro Kabaddi League title.
Mohit Nandal & Jaideep Dahiya – Haryana Steelers
Haryana Steelers named not one, but two captains for PKL 2023. Mohit Nandal and Jaideep Dahiya have been handed over the responsibility. Both the defenders made their debut in the Pro Kabaddi League in 2021, representing Haryana Steelers.
Since then, they have been the best-performing defenders for the side in the last two years. Despite the presence of Siddharth Desai and Prapanjan, the team management rewarded them duly with the captaincy. It remains to be seen whether they can lead the side to their maiden PKL title.
Fazel Atrachali – Gujarat Giants
Iranian legend Fazel Atrachali will lead the Gujarat Giants in the upcoming season. He lead Puneri Paltan last year to the final. The Iranian also led Gujarat Giants to a runner-up finish way back in 2017.
Gujarat Giants are yet to win a title in the league. Having now reunited with the Gujarat Giants set up and also with coach Ram Meher Singh, Fazel will want to go all the way and win the coveted trophy
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Surinder Singh – U Mumba
U Mumba have retained defender Sunrinder Singh as the team’s captain. He was the team’s captain in the last edition in which the 2015 champions ended up in the seventh position on the points table. Having been re-shown the faith, he will look to repay it with a much-better show in the league this year.
Neeraj Kumar – Patna Pirates
Neeraj Kumar has been retained as the skipper of the Patna Pirates. The three-time champions finished eighth on the points table last year and look to make a comeback in the upcoming season.
Maninder Singh – Bengal Warriors
Experienced Maninder Singh will once again lead the Bengal Warriors. He has been leading the team in the last three editions. This year, he was released ahead of the auction. However, he was bought back at the auction. Under his leadership, the team finished ninth on the points table last year.
Pawan Sehrawat – Telugu Titans
Indian National Team captain Pawan Sehrawat will be leading the Telugu Titans in PKL 2023. The star raider was bought by the team for a whopping sum of 2.6 crores, making him the most expensive player in the league’s history.
Telugu Titans experienced horrendous outings in the last two seasons. The team finished on the bottom of the points table and relies of Pawan Sehrawat this year as they look to make a comeback.
