Naveen Kumar is an Indian kabaddi player who plays as a raider for the Dabang Delhi KC team in Pro Kabaddi and the Indian national kabaddi team. Naveen is the first player born in the 2000s to feature in Pro Kabaddi and is also the fastest player to reach 500 raid points in the league’s history. The 21-year-old achieved the feat in December 2021, taking just 47 games to reach the landmark.

Teach them young

Born on February 14, 2000, Naveen Kumar’s kabaddi journey started off at an early age. He was introduced to the sport by his grandfather, a former state-level wrestler, and became a top name in his school’s U-17 team before being elected to play in junior nationals where he made it to the finals in 2016.

Naveen completed his higher education from the Kuk University, Haryana, and this was when he competed at the national level for the first time. The 21-year-old ended up as the most successful raider of the tournament, which helped him gain immense recognition.

However, no good thing comes easy. As for Naveen, he had to juggle a lot between his personal and family life while keeping his dream of becoming a top name in Kabaddi alive. But the youngster was encouraged by his family at every step of his life.

“I received the support of my family and childhood coach and realized that I have to do something in the field of Kabaddi,�?he once said in an old interview.

The grand entry in Pro Kabaddi

The breakthrough in Naveen’s career came when he won gold with SAI in junior nationals as this was when Dabang Delhi came knocking on his doors. He participated in the NYP (New Young Player) trials and was roped in by the team management in 2018 for Pro Kabaddi Season 6 for a mere INR 6.60 lakhs.

By that time, the team itself was experimenting with different strategies after failing to qualify for the playoffs for the first five PKL seasons. Naveen, meanwhile, made a stable start to his new life, scoring five, seven and three points in his first three games. 

His fourth game against Bengal Warriors, however, was when he showcased his true potential, ending the match with 11 points in a nine-point win. This was the same match where he scored his first-ever Super 10.

He finished PKL season 6 with a tally of 177 points, most by any player from his team. Riding on his scorching form, Dabang Delhi managed to reach the eliminator round where they lost out to UP Yoddha despite Naveen scoring another Super 10.

Pro Kabaddi Season 7 - A step higher

Naveen exceeded expectations in only his second season in Pro Kabaddi. After being retained by Dabang Delhi for INR 30 lakhs, the youngster finished with a tally of 303 points, the third-highest return of PKL season 7. Furthermore, he was on the mat for a whopping 81 per cent of his team’s raids that season.

Credit where it is due; Naveen became one of the most potent raiders in PKL history in little to no time. The youngster tallied an impressive 15 points in the semi-final against Bengaluru Bulls in a 44-38 win as Delhi made it to their first-ever PKL final.

Despite his best efforts of 18 points in the final, Dabang Delhi lost the title to Bengal Warriors in a 39-34 loss.

History in the making

The fact that there was no PKL action in 2020 did not deter Naveen from his goal. As teams prepared for the new season, Naveen had something unique in the offering. In December 2021, lining up against U Mumba, Naveen Kumar broke Maninder Singh’s record to become the fastest player to 500 raid points in the history of Pro Kabaddi. It took the 21-year-old took a mere 47 games to reach the milestone.

Naveen also holds the record of scoring 28 successive Super 10s, the most by any player in the history of Pro Kabaddi. 

Naveen Kumar’s Pro Kabaddi stats

Pro Kabaddi Season	Team	Auction price	Matches	Raid points
Season 6	Dabang Delhi KC	INR 6.60 lakhs (NYP)	22	172
Season 7	Dabang Delhi KC	INR 30 lakhs (retained)	23	301
Season 8	Dabang Delhi KC	INR 90 lakhs (retained)	17	207

Author: Swapnil Bhopatkar

Featured photo: Pro Kabaddi

The Pro Kabaddi Most Valuable Player (MVP) award is won by players who perform exceptionally well throughout the season.

Since the inception of Pro Kabaddi in 2014, six players across eight seasons have won the award with raiders predominantly dominating the list.

Of all the kabaddi players on the Pro Kabaddi MVP list, only Pardeep Narwal and Naveen Kumar have managed to win the award twice. While Pardeep won the prestigious award in Season 4 and 5 of PKL, Naveen Kumar won in Season 7 and Season 8 respectively. 

Meanwhile, Asian Gold medalist Manjeet Chhillar is the only all-rounder to have won the MVP award.

Here are the players on the Pro Kabaddi MVP list.

Pro Kabaddi Season 1 MVP: Anup Kumar

The first captain for the U Mumba team, Anup Kumar, was the standout performer in the inaugural season of the Pro Kabaddi with 169 points. His tally of 155 raid points in Season 1 were the most points by any raider for the first four seasons until Pardeep Narwal broke the record in Season 5 (2017).

The 2016 Kabaddi World Cup winner led U Mumbai to the final, although they lost 35-24 to Jaipur Pink Panthers in a riveting clash.

Pro Kabaddi Season 2 MVP: Manjeet Chhillar

Manjeet Chhillar won the Pro Kabaddi MVP award in Season 2 for his all-round performance with the Bengaluru Bulls. The all-rounder - who finished with 107 points (67 raid points, 40 tackle points) - is the only player in Pro Kabaddi history to feature in the top 10 list for both best raiders and defenders in a single edition.

Despite battling health issues during the league stage, Manjeet was the driving force for the Bulls en-route to the PKL final against U Mumba. Back then, his tally of 11 points was the most by any player in the Season 2 PKL final, but the Bengaluru Bulls star ended on the losing side by a twist of fate.

Manjeet Chhillar continues to hold the records for most tackle points (339) and most successful tackles (324) in Pro Kabaddi.

Pro Kabaddi Season 3 MVP: Rohit Kumar

Rohit Kumar is fondly remembered as the first MVP winner of a PKL-winning team. Rohit, known for his ruthless attacking and superb flexibility on the mat, capped a memorable debut season in the Pro Kabaddi as he pioneered Patna Pirates to the title in 2016.

He tallied 102 raid points in 12 matches, averaging 8.5 raid points per match. This was one of the key reasons he was awarded the PKL MVP award.

The raider, now plying his trade with Telugu Titans, has amassed 100 points in every PKL season since his debut in Pro Kabaddi Season 3.

Pro Kabaddi Season 4 MVP: Pardeep Narwal

Season 4 marked the arrival of Pardeep Narwal as a prolific raider. The former Patna Pirates star, who registered 116 raid points with 10 Super Raids in Season 3, upped the ante in Pro Kabaddi Season 4 by tallying 133 points.

The Haryana raider developed his signature move ‘Dubki�?in PKL Season 4, as he racked up five Super 10s and completed three Super Raids in 16 matches to pioneer Patna to their second successive final.

Pro Kabaddi Season 5 MVP: Pardeep Narwal

Pardeep Narwal broke not just one but five records in a historic PKL Season 5 with Patna Pirates. The Haryana-born raider went past Anup Kumar for most raid points in a single campaign whilst playing the 12th match of the season.

Going forward, Pardeep went on to script history by tallying the most total points in a season (369 points), most successful raids (271), most super raids (18) and most super 10s (19).

Pardeep Narwal averaged a mammoth 14.19 raid points per match in PKL Season 5.

�?On his special day, let's take a look back at that famous 8-point raid that Pardeep Narwal scored with so much of ease. #PirateHamla #Pirates #ProKabaddi #HappyBirthdayDubkiKing pic.twitter.com/LTZIe3bEyb

�?Patna Pirates (@PatnaPirates) February 16, 2020

Against the Haryana Steelers in Eliminator 2, Pardeep Narwal completed a historic raid worth eight points, as he managed to get six defenders out and secured two all-out points as well. In all, the �?/span>Dubki King�?registered a record 34-point haul in the match.

Pro Kabaddi Season 6 MVP: Pawan Sehrawat

Of all his performances in PKL Season 6, Pawan Sehrawat will be remembered for spearheading Bengaluru Bulls�?comeback in the final against the Gujarat Giants (formerly known as Gujarat Fortunegiants).

The Bulls were eight points behind with just 18 minutes left in the final, but a spectacular performance in the second half saw Sehrawat turn around the contest in his team’s favour and end the match with 22 points - the most by any kabaddi player in a PKL final.

Pawan Sehrawat earned the MVP award as he finished the campaign as the leading raid-point scorer (271) and registered the most Super Raids (12) in the entire season.

Pro Kabaddi Season 7 MVP: Naveen Kumar

After a splendid debut campaign with Dabang Delhi K.C. in Season 6, Naveen Kumar continued his stellar form in PKL Season 7 with 303 points in 23 matches.

But what was more outstanding is that the young kabaddi player registered 22 Super 10s in the campaign, breaking the previous record set by Pardeep Narwal in Season 5.

A raider with speed, strength, agility and tact, Naveen Kumar averaged a staggering 13.08 raid points per game in Pro Kabaddi Season 7. By the end of the campaign, he became the youngest player to score 300 raid points in a single Pro Kabaddi season.

Pro Kabaddi Season 8 MVP: Naveen Kumar 

Naveen Kumar became only the second player in Pro Kabaddi after Pardeep Narwal to win the MVP award of the season twice. Naveen's 207 raid points across 17 PKL matches in Season 8 played a key role in Dabang Delhi K.C. winning their maiden Pro Kabaddi title.

Naveen Kumar scored 12 super 10s in PKL Season 8 with seven of them coming in succession.  

Author: William Paul

Featured photo: Pro Kabaddi

Dabang Delhi K.C. (DEL) will take on Telugu Titans (TEL) in match 35 of Pro Kabaddi Season 8 at Sheraton Grand Whitefield, Bengaluru on Wednesday, January 5. 

DEL vs TEL Dream11 prediction

Dabang Delhi K.C. are the only unbeaten team in PKL 2021-22, with three wins and two draws from five outings. The PKL 2019 finalists are two points behind Season 6 champions Bengaluru Bulls in the Pro Kabaddi standings, and are outright favourites for Wednesday’s meeting against Telugu Titans.

Telugu Titans have appeared underwhelming this term, sitting second from bottom on the points table with nine points from five games. Siddharth Desai’s inconsistent form has been one of the main reasons why TEL have failed to kick on and register even a single win so far.

DEL vs TEL Dream11 team tips for Pro Kabaddi Season 8 

Top tip: Best raider

It certainly is a no-brainer that Naveen Kumar must be the top raider for fantasy teams. Picking up from where he left off last season, the Dabang Delhi K.C. star has scored 81 raid points, including five Super 10s. Naveen is one of PKL’s most prolific raiders and will look to add to his fantasy points tally of 706 against a struggling Telugu defence.

Top tip: Best defender

Joginder Narwal can be backed as the best defender in the DEL vs TEL match, given his nine tackle points at a strike rate of 47 per cent. With 260 fantasy points up till now, the DEL captain looks poised to put on another commanding display against the Titans and help his team maintain their unbeaten record.

Top tip: Best all-rounder

If there is anyone who can turn things around for Telugu Titans, it is Ankit Beniwal. The TEL star is listed as an all-rounder in fantasy selections and is a worthy pick owing to his impressive numbers - 31 raid points of which 10 have come from do-or-die raids. Fantasy players can draft Ankit into their teams for 14 credits.

DEL vs TEL probable starting lineups

DEL starting 7 (probable): Ashu Malik, Naveen Kumar, Jeeva Kumar, Joginder Narwal (captain), Manjeet Chhillar, Sandeep Narwal, Vijay

TEL starting 7 (probable): Ankit Beniwal, Rakesh Gowda, Rohit Kumar (captain), Prince D, Ruturaj Shivaji Koravi, Surender Singh, Sandeep Kandola 

SportsAdda will bring you Dabang Delhi K.C. vs Telugu Titans live scores.

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Featured photo: Pro Kabaddi

Due to the league’s auction rules, it is an incredibly rare sight to see a player in the Pro Kabaddi league spend multiple seasons with the same team.

A handful of top players have, however, managed to stay with the same side for a number of years and build their status as not just incredible kabaddi players but also leave a legacy at their team.

Below, we take a look at the players who lead franchises in points scored, starting with the first six teams in alphabetical order.

Bengal Warriors �?Maninder Singh

Current skipper Maninder Singh led the way for the Bengal Warriors with 603 points in just 65 matches, a tremendous average of 9.27 points. Interestingly, Maninder only took over from previous leader Jang Kun Lee in Season 7. The Korean, who spent six seasons with the franchise, scored 411 points in his time with the team.

Bengaluru Bulls �?Pawan Sehrawat

With 673 points, Season 6 MVP and the reigning Best Raider Pawan Sehrawat is the Bengaluru Bulls�?all-time leading scorer. Off those 673, Sehrawat has scored 617 in the last two campaigns with the other 55 coming in his first stint with the team in Season 3 and 4.

Dabang Delhi K.C. �?Naveen Kumar

Reigning PKL MVP Naveen Kumar is Dabang Delhi K.C.’s all-time leading scorer with 480 points. The young sensation has played just 45 matches for the team and scored his points at an incredible average of 10.66. Previously, Kashiling Adake was the team’s leading scorer with 406 points.

Gujarat Fortunegiants �?Sachin Tanwar

Raider Sachin Tanwar has been with Gujarat Fortunegiants since their debut and is their all-time leading scorer with 462 points in 63 matches. Tanwar scored 159 points in his debut campaign in Season 5 and was named the Best Debutant of the season.

Haryana Steelers �?Vikash Kandola

Vikash Kandola has risen from a young and promising raider to one of the best in the PKL. Kandola scored 195 points in Season 7, taking his tally to 430 points in 51 matches for the Steelers. The raider is well clear of next best Prashant Kumar Rai, who has scored 171 for the side.

Jaipur Pink Panthers �?Deepak Niwas Hooda and Jasvir Singh

The third-highest scorer in the history of the PKL Deepak Niwas Hooda is Jaipur Pink Panthers�?all-time leading scorer with 366 points, alongside former player Jasvir, who spent five seasons with the franchise. Hooda, however, is the team’s most successful raider with 342 points, four more than Jasvir who scored 338 points.

Feature images courtesy: ProKabaddi.com

Earlier, we looked at the list of the Pro Kabaddi league’s most efficient defenders in Season 7 and it featured some of the sport’s best.

Likewise, below we look at the raiders, who were not only incredibly prolific in Season 7, but also thoroughly efficient on the mat.

Here are the top five most efficient raiders in Pro Kabaddi Season 7:

(NOTE: This list only features raiders with over 100 raid points in Season 7 of the Pro Kabaddi League)

Pawan Sehrawat - Bengaluru Bulls

The league’s leading raid point scorer was also its most efficient.

Breaking the record in front of the Record-Breaker himself - Pawan Sehrawat's 35th raid point in #HARvBLR is bound to go down in the history of the game!

Relive our moment of the day here!

⚔️: #VIVOProKabaddi
⌛️: Every day, 7 PM
: Star Sports and Hotstar#IsseToughKuchNahi pic.twitter.com/5DU45HVCWj

�?ProKabaddi (@ProKabaddi) October 3, 2019

The Bengaluru Bulls superstar scored 346 raid points in just 461 raid attempts, giving him an incredible strike rate of 75.05. Sehrawat was the only raider or defender in the league with a strike rate of over 70 in Pro Kabaddi Season 7.

Despite raiding so heavily, Sehrawat still had the highest percentage of successful raids, with 56.83 among players with over 100 raid points in Season 7.

Pardeep Narwal �?Patna Pirates

Pro Kabaddi’s G.O.A.T., Pardeep Narwal was the second most efficient raider in Pro Kabaddi Season 7.

For the first time since Season 3, Pardeep failed to win an individual award at the end of the campaign, as Sehrawat beat him to the Best Raider award while Dabang Delhi K.C.’s Naveen Kumar won the league’s Most Valuable Player award.

Pardeep Narwal is our raider of the match, in other news, sky is still blue!

The record-breaker turned #HYDvPAT, helping @PatnaPirates to tie the #VIVOProKabaddi encounter.

All kabaddi action:

�?Everyday, 7 PM

Star Sports & Hotstar#IsseToughKuchNahi pic.twitter.com/9YVHHDp12F

�?ProKabaddi (@ProKabaddi) September 20, 2019

Still, Pardeep embarked on another historic campaign. The raider became the first man in Pro Kabaddi history to record multiple campaigns with over 300 raid points. His 302 came in 453 raid attempts, giving him a strike rate of 66.66 percent.

It wasn’t the easiest campaign for Pardeep, however, as the raider was tackled an incredible 109 times, trailing only Sehrawat in that category, who was tackled six more times than Pardeep in more raid attempts. The Patna Pirates ace had the lowest percentage of successful raids among the top 5 raid point scorers of Season 7, with only 51.66.

What helped his strike rate was his league-leading 15 Super Tackles, the second-most by a player in a single Pro Kabaddi campaign, behind Pardeep’s own record of 18 in Season 5.

Siddharth Desai �?Telugu Titans

After a rough start to his campaign in Season 7, Telugu Titans�?Siddharth Desai slowly got into his groove and finished the campaign in strong fashion, ending it with 217 raid points.

Rise, Baahubali!
Siddharth Desai showed why @Telugu_Titans shelled out the big bucks for him this season with a show-stealing performance to help his side pick up their first win of the season!

Keep watching #VIVOProKabaddi on Star Sports & Hotstar! #IsseToughKuchNahi pic.twitter.com/iNelfV3Qhp

�?ProKabaddi (@ProKabaddi) August 12, 2019

Desai took 331 raid attempts to score his 217 raid points, giving him a strike rate of 65.55. Desai also boasted of a raid success rate of 53.47, which ranked third in the league among players with 100 raid points, ahead of the likes of Naveen Kumar and Pardeep Narwal.

The Telugu Titans skipper also had the fourth-most multi-point raids in Season 7 with 40, behind Sehrawat (84), Pardeep (68) and Naveen (50).

Maninder Singh �?Bengal Warriors

Despite missing the playoffs, it’s hard to overlook Maninder Singh’s contribution for the Bengal Warriors in Season 7.

.@BengalWarriors skipper Maninder Singh has a habit of pulling off outrageous raids, and the #Mumboys had no answer to this one!

Watch #VIVOProkabaddi every day at 7 PM, LIVE on Star Sports and Hotstar. #IsseToughKuchNahi pic.twitter.com/tHsYGQJ5xF

�?ProKabaddi (@ProKabaddi) August 10, 2019

Captain Mani led the team with 205 raid points and it took him just 318 raid attempts to score them, giving him a raid strike rate of 64.46. With a raid success rate of 53.77, Maninder ranked only second behind Sehrawat in that category, and his 57 failed raids were the fewest among players with over 150 raid points in Season 7.

Naveen Kumar �?Dabang Delhi K.C.

League MVP Naveen Kumar finished the campaign with 301 raid points, which took him to a league-high 472 raid attempts, giving him a raid strike rate of 63.77.

A 10th Super 10 for @DabangDelhiKC's #10 Naveen Kumar saw them steal a win from the Panthers in the very end! What a season he’s having!

Keep watching #VIVOProKabaddi action, LIVE on Star Sports and Hotstar. #IsseToughKuchNahi #RivalryWeek pic.twitter.com/b5snv9mMXU

�?ProKabaddi (@ProKabaddi) September 5, 2019

Naveen’s raid success rate of 53.18 was the fourth-best among players with over 150 raid points. However, his 70 failed raids were the second-fewest among players with over 200 raid points.

Feature image courtesy: ProKabaddi.com

Jaipur Pink Panthers skipper Deepak Hooda has featured in all seven seasons of the Pro Kabaddi league and is the third-highest points scorer with 943.

Over the years, Hooda has shared the mat with some of the finest players in the history of the sport and on an Instagram live session, the all-rounder revealed his Pro Kabaddi Dream Team.

Hooda picked himself as the all-rounder in the side as well as the captain. Here’s the rest of the side:

Corners �?Surender Nada and Ravinder Pahal

For the Left Corner spot, Hooda went with Indian kabaddi stalwart Surender Nada.

Nada played for U Mumba for the first three seasons of the Pro Kabaddi league and won the title in Season 2. He then joined Bengaluru Bulls for a year before joining Haryana Steelers in Season 5 and captaining the side to a playoff appearance in their debut campaign. The veteran won the Best Defender Award after finishing Season 5 as the league’s leading tackle point scorer. Nada’s average of 3.13 tackle points per game is the second-highest among players over 70 appearances in the Pro Kabaddi league.

For the Right Corner spot, Hooda picked former Puneri Paltan teammate Ravinder Pahal. ‘The Hawk�? as he is fondly known, is the second man to score 300 tackle points in the Pro Kabaddi league. Only Manjeet Chhillar (339) has scored more tackle points than Pahal (326) in the PKL.

Covers �?Parvesh Bhainswal and Sunil Kumar

For the two Cover positions, Hooda went with Gujarat Fortunegiants duo Parvesh Bhainswal and Sunil Kumar.

Parvesh and Sunil have been the heartbeat of the Fortunegiants since Season 5 and have scored and assisted more tackle points than any other duo since their debut. Parvesh holds the record for most points by a Cover defender with 86, while Sunil has the second-most with 76.

Raiders �?Naveen Kumar and Pawan Sehrawat

Reigning PKL MVP Naveen Kumar was one of the two raiders that Hooda picked in his Dream Team.

The Dabang Delhi K.C. youngster had an incredible debut campaign in Season 6 before embarking on a historic year in Season 7, where he became the third man to score 300 points in a season and smashed the record for most Super 10s in a row with an incredible 21 straight and counting. Naveen led Delhi to the final of PKL Season 7 where they were beaten by Bengal Warriors.

Pawan Sehrawat was the other raider that Hooda picked for his side.

The Bengaluru Bulls raider led his side to the title in Season 6 and was named the league MVP for his incredible campaign. Sehrawat followed that up with another brilliant season, scoring 360 points in Season 7, just nine short of Pardeep Narwal’s all-time record. The Hi-Flyer also set the new record for most points in a single game, with 39 against the Haryana Steelers. Sehrawat won the Best Raider award in Season 7, becoming just the second man to win the PKL title, the Best Raider Award as well as the MVP after Pardeep.

Feature image courtesy: ProKabaddi.com

Performing under pressure requires great skill and immense mental fortitude. While not everyone possesses the ability to withstand the pressure in crunch situations, those who do, end up carving a niche for themselves.

The do-or-die moments in a match hold utmost significance from the context of testing a player's agility, calibre and temperament. Very often, the margin of win or loss boils down to a team's performance in these moments of a match.

In the history of the league, we have witnessed many such amazing and breathtaking moments. While some players have managed to portray their skills and maintain their consistency throughout, others have ended up becoming the go-to men for their respective teams in such crucial junctures.

Today, almost every team has a specialist who is tasked to perform the role of scoring points during the make-or-break moments of the match and come out on top.

Here, we look at the top five players from Season 7 who scored the maximum raid points in do-or-die raids.

Name	Team Name	Matches	Do-or-die Raids	Total Raid Points	Average Raid Points	Raid Strike Rate
Vikash Kandola	HS	20	54	42	2.1	77.77
Pardeep Narwal	PAT	22	59	41	2.05	69.49
Abhishek Singh	MUM	21	58	37	1.76	63.79
Naveen Kumar	DEL	23	46	36	1.71	78.26
Shrikant Jadhav	UPY	22	41	28	1.75	68.29

Shrikant Jadhav - 28 raid points 

A team comprising stalwarts like Rishank Devadiga and Monu Goyat on the raiding front is often expected to rattle the opposition defence with ease.  However, Season 7 of Pro Kabaddi did not turn out to be the best for both the Yoddha raiders, returning with 75 and 65 raid points respectively.

Shrikant Jadhav, meanwhile, had a stellar season, scoring 148 raid points from 22 matches at an average of 6.73 raid points per match and was the best raider in the UP setup by a fair margin. He was instrumental in bailing his team out of trouble on numerous occasions in the do-or-die raids, scoring 28 raid points at an astounding strike-rate of 68.29.

Naveen Kumar - 36 raid points 

The young prodigy and the future star of Indian kabaddi was the fulcrum of Delhi's terrific run in the previous edition. Naveen had a dream run, scoring 301 raid points and becoming only the third player in the history of the tournament to achieve the feat.

In the do-or-die scenarios, Naveen had a remarkable strike-rate of 78.26, the best in the tournament among players involved in 40 or more do-or-die raids. 

Abhishek Singh �?37 raid points 

The go-to man for U Mumba had a phenomenal PKL Season 7. Abhishek was involved in 58 do-or-die raids, scoring 37 raid points at a strike-rate of 63.79. Abhishek's vital points through do-or-die raids helped U Mumba finish fourth in the points table. 

Pardeep Narwal - 41 raid points 

'Dubki King' Pardeep Narwal was the sole bright spark in what was a forgettable season for the Patna Pirates. Narwal scored 41 raid points from a total of 59 do-or-die raids in the season with an average of 2.05 raid points per match - the second-best in the entire season. 

Vikash Kandola �?42 raid points 

At the top of the list is the promising Haryana Steelers raider. Vikash scored a total of 42 raid points from 54 raids at a staggering strike rate of 77.77, averaging 2.1 raid points per match, the highest among all the raiders involved in do-or-die raids throughout the season. Vikash's speed and guile helped his team overcome the mighty defences of teams in the tournament.

Feature image courtesy: Twitter / @PatnaPirates

The Indian Kabaddi team entered the final of the South Asian Games 2019 in Nepal after a hefty win over a struggling Bangladesh side. The team, led by Deepak Niwas Hooda gave no chance to their neighbours and ended the game with a 44-19 scoreline in their favour.

This win re-confirmed India’s growing dominance in the sport of kabaddi as they now stand on the cusp of lifting another gold medal at the esteemed competition.  

India went on the mat with five raiders and just two defenders, completely glorifying their attacking prowess. Patna Pirates�?Pardeep Narwal was on a roll as he bagged a Super Raid in the first raid of the match itself.

Read | Standard style and circle style- the two variants of Kabaddi

Vikash Kandola and Surender Nada played an equally important role by gaining valuable points for the team while Naveen Kumar and Pawan Sehrawat’s alertness on the mat proved useful for the Indian team.

Defensive duties were shared between Amit Hooda and Surender who ensured that corners were covered and paved no way for the Bangladeshi raiders to collect points. The first half saw two All-Outs which gave the Indian contingent a substantial lead of 20 points going into the second half.   

3⃣rd consecutive win for the Indian Men's Kabaddi team and they are sitting on the of the table at the #SouthAsianGames2019 #PirateHamla #SAG2019 pic.twitter.com/JAygVBP5ho

�?Patna Pirates (@PatnaPirates) December 7, 2019

In the second half, Bangladesh tried to rediscover their lost groove but were held by the incessant raids led by Pardeep and Naveen. On the day, Bangladeshi raiders fell short and proved too fragile for the Indian defenders as despite three super tackles by Bangladesh defenders, their raiders were unable to steer through.

The match ended with India taking a mammoth 25-point lead as the scoresheet read 44-19.

India have now ensured a place in the final after also beating Sri Lanka and Pakistan in previous games.

Sub-continent rivals Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan are still hovering around and still stand a chance to qualify for the final on December 9, with one group-stage game remaining for each team.

Feature image courtesy: Twitter/ @UpYoddha

The Indian Kabaddi men's team are on cloud nine after registering an emphatic victory over their arch nemesis Pakistan in the South Asian Games in Nepal. The team led by the charismatic Deepak Niwas Hooda were resilient and displayed immense structure while defending and looked ruthless in their raiding pursuits.

The Indian team went in with an offensive approach with raiding duties taken care by Pawan Sehrawat and Naveen Kumar while Nitesh Kumar and Vishal Bharadwaj took care of the defence along with the invaluable help of Sunil Kumar and Parvesh Bhainswal.

India were in complete control throughout the match as they thwarted all the raiding advances made by the sublime raiders of Pakistan, notably Mudassir Shah and Nadim Warraich. However, Pakistan's defence was also unable to keep their neighbours at bay as Pawan Sehrawat’s agility proved too much of a burden for their leaky defence. At the end of the first half, Pakistan were trailing 9-29.

The incessant raids from the Indian contingent continued in the second half as well with Pawan leading the charge and scoring quickly and more freely. Although, Pakistan displayed some signs of a coming back into the game but the dying moments of the game garnered favourable results for India with the opponents failing to score even a solo point.

The full-time score was 49-22 and India asserted their dominance in style by declaring their intent of winning the gold medal once again.

India beat Pakistan in yet another game, the Indian Men's Kabaddi team beat them convincingly in #SouthAsianGames2019 #PirateHamla #ProKabbadi #INDvPAK #INDvsPAK #Kabaddi pic.twitter.com/mqUgsqSQBN

�?Patna Pirates (@PatnaPirates) December 6, 2019

In the other encounter, Nepal fell apart against a charged-up Sri Lankan side which saw the hosts enduring a 12-point margin difference as the match ended 22-34 in favour of the island nation. Due to their third consecutive loss, Nepal are now out of the race for the knockout spots.

Women’s team in the final

The Indian Women’s Kabaddi team got the better of hosts Nepal and eased through the game comfortably. The preliminary stages of Women’s Kabaddi have finally concluded with India and Nepal having qualified for the gold medal match to be played on December 9. This will be a repeat of the match concluded today between the two nations where Nepal will be eyeing for a revenge to even the scores in the final.

Ritu Negi and Harvinder Kaur continues to be India’s biggest strength with the raiding responsibilities lying on the shoulders of Pushpa and Sakshi Kumari.

Feature image courtesy: Twitter/ @ProKabaddi

The Indian Men’s Kabaddi team got off to a winning start at the ongoing South Asian Games 2019, thrashing Sri Lanka 49-16.

The Day 2 opener, played at the APF Hall Chowk, Kathmandu, saw defending champions, India, dominating right from the beginning. Sri Lanka, on their part, came on the back of an optimistic win over Pakistan, but were left stranded, as they failed to perceive India’s attacking approach.

Captain Deepak Niwas Hooda lead his team from the front and his men hardly had to put any effort in cruising into a comfortable lead. By the stroke of half-time, the likes of Naveen Kumar and Pawan Sehrawat guided India to an impressive 25-9 lead.

The South Asian Games offers the Indian contingent a great opportunity of testing their bench strength, and the substitutes duly delivered what was expected. Nitesh Kumar and Darshan Kadian were brought in for the second period and the latter’s quick-witted style added further misery to Sri Lanka’s fate, and gave India some important bonus points.

India soon established a 26-point lead and there was no coming back for the Lankans from that point on. Naveen Kumar came out on top in the final raid as India sealed the win in style.

The team is now set to lock horns with Pakistan in the evening session of Day 3 of the South Asian Games on Friday.

Women’s team rise to the occasion

Day 1 of the South Asian Games saw the Indian women’s team also displaying their quality their Sri Lankan counterparts all ends up. Led by their captain, Priyanka the team registered a thumping 53-14 win in the opener.

Such was India’s dominance on the day that they cruised to an 18-point lead in the beginning. The scorecard read 25-7 by half-time, and it remained a one-sided affair throughout.

Feature image courtesy: Twitter / @KabaddibySW