Dabang Delhi aim for PKL comeback

Dabang Delhi KC, PKL Season 8 champions, gear up for Season 12 with a strong squad but face challenges after Naveen Kumar’s exit and a shortage of quality all-rounders.

Hyderabad: Pro Kabaddi League Season 8 champions Dabang Delhi KC will be eager to reclaim the PKL title after crashing out in the semi-finals last season.

It has been one of the most consistent teams in recent years and has reached the Playoffs in each of the last six PKL seasons.

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PKL Season 12 will see Dabang Delhi KC continue with Joginder Narwal as their head coach. Under his tutelage, Dabang Delhi KC was one of the most dominant teams last campaign. With 13 wins in 22 games, the Delhi-based outfit finished second in the PKL Season 11 standings with 81 points, before they went down to Patna Pirates in the semi-finals.

Having spent ₹4.899 crore, Dabang Delhi KC assembled a strong squad that covered most of their bases. Here’s a closer look at the strengths and weaknesses of Dabang Delhi KC ahead of PKL Season 12.

Strengths
Dabang Delhi KC’s biggest strength has to be the quality and experience of the raiders and defenders in their squad. The Pro Kabaddi Season 8 winners used their Final Bid Match (FBM) card at the PKL Season 12 auction to retain their star raider Ashu Malik for two seasons for a whopping ₹1.90 crore.

They have added talented raider Neeraj Narwal for ₹32.60 lakh and acquired the services of experienced raider Ajinkya Ashok Pawar for ₹13 lakh at the auction.

Additionally, Dabang Delhi KC have roped in Fazel Atrachali, the most successful defender in Pro Kabaddi League history, at the Season 12 Player Auction for his base price of ₹30 lakh. The Iranian left corner is the first player to reach 500 tackle points in Pro Kabaddi League and has already racked up 545 tackle points in 188 games so far.

The team has also snapped up seasoned right cover Surjeet Singh for ₹20 lakh, added Iranian right corner Amir Hossein Bastami for ₹30 lakh, and signed experienced left corner Saurabh Nandal for ₹13 lakh to bolster their defensive unit.

Weaknesses
While Dabang Delhi KC have assembled a formidable squad on paper, the departure of their talismanic captain and star raider Naveen Kumar ahead of PKL Season 12 cannot be overlooked. Naveen, who was an integral member of Dabang Delhi KC since 2018, guided the team to their maiden Pro Kabaddi title in 2022.

Representing the franchise, Naveen also won the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award in back-to-back editions in Season 7 and 8. He earlier forged a successful partnership with Ashu Malik and created havoc in the opposition’s defence.

Furthermore, Dabang Delhi KC may have to deal with the lack of quality all-rounders in their squad in the upcoming season. Amit, Ashish Kumar Sangwan, Naveen and Arkam Shaikh are the only recognised all-rounders in their squad, and they will need to produce impactful performances.

Opportunities
Pro Kabaddi Season 12 will be a great opportunity for players like Neeraj Narwal, Anil Gurjar, Mohit, Vijay and Akshit to step up and make the most of the chances they could receive in Dabang Delhi KC’s raiding unit.

While accomplished raider Ashu Malik will once again lead their attack, he will need support from other talented raiders if Dabang Delhi KC are to clinch the PKL Season 12 title.

After a below-par campaign with Bengal Warriors last season, Iranian defender Fazel Atrachali will be hoping to return to his best and guide Dabang Delhi KC to PKL glory.

Threats
A lot of how Dabang Delhi KC’s season unfolds could depend on the form of Ashu Malik. Ashu has been one of the leading raiders in the league and has accumulated 538 raid points in the last 46 matches of the previous two seasons.

The squad also lacks quality all-rounders, which could pose a significant area of concern to the team’s fortunes in the upcoming Pro Kabaddi season.