Indian kabaddi captain Pawan Sehrawat bettered his own record of being the most expensive player in Pro Kabaddi League history after being roped in by Telugu Titans for a whopping Rs 2.6 crore in the PKL auction in Mumbai on Monday.
Last season, Sehrawat was snapped up by Tamil Thalaivas for Rs. 2.26 crores but missed the entire edition due to an ACL injury sustained in the very first game.
“We had a plan A and B. We were looking to get Pawan and then build the team around him,” Titans coach L. Srinivas Reddy said.
CHECK OUT | PKL 2023, 5 crorepatis on auction day 1: Pawan, Shadloui, Maninder, Fazel, Siddharth
When asked if it was a risk to spend more than half of the available purse on Sehrawat, Reddy said that kabaddi is all about calculated risks.
“In body contact sports, things like injuries can happen to anyone. Last time too we took a few risks and gambled on a few players, and ended up in the bottom of the table. We’ve done the same thing this time by taking a punt on a few players. We will do our best to improve and see what rewards we reap,” he added.
Earlier in the day, Iranian allrounder Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh became the most expensive foreign player in PKL history after he was picked up by Puneri Paltan for Rs. 2.35 crore. At the time, he went ahead of Pawan’s previous all-time price of Rs. 2.26 crore and also pipped compatriot Fazel Atrachali to become the most expensive foreign player ever in the league.
“We came in fully intending to get Shadloui. We wanted a main left corner and that’s why we went all out for Shadloui,” coach BC Ramesh said.
“If Fazel had come ahead, we would have bid on merit,” Ramesh said of his former captain. “Shadloui is a rising star. In the Asian Championship final, we saw his raiding skills too. His all-round ability is something we like and comes in well with our sensibilities. We don’t go by the name, we go by the position. We looked at the performances over the past seven months,” he added.
With the team looking beyond Fazel, one will have to wait and see who the management picks as the side’s captain.
“No (Shadloui is not an automatic choice) we have Aslam. He is a knowledgeable player and Shadloui too has leadership qualities. We will take a call in training about who is able to take control of proceedings and earn the faith of the team,” he added.
Bengal Warriors retained Maninder Singh using the Final Bid Match option, for Rs. 2.12 crore, making him the second most expensive Indian player in this auction.
Gujarat Giants went for the experienced Iran captain Fazel Atrachali, with a bid of Rs. 1.6 crore. This fee went past his previous best price tag of Rs. 1.38 crore which Puneri Paltan spent for him in last year’s auction.
Fazel will have the company of his compatriot and close friend Mohammad Esmaeil Nabibakhsh who was roped in for Rs. 22 Lakh.
Siddharth Desai, who has had an underwhelming few seasons in the league, rounded off the crorepati club on day 1, after being snapped up by Haryana Steelers for Rs. 1 crore.
TOP 5: Category A players on Day 1
Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh (Iran) Rs. 2.35 crore- Puneri Paltan
Maninder Singh (India) Rs. 2.12 crore - Bengal Warriors
Fazel Atrachali (Iran) Rs. 1.60 crore- Gujarat Giants
Manjeet (India) Rs. 92 lakh- Patna Pirates
Vijay Malik (India) Rs. 85 lakh- U.P. Yoddhas
TOP 5: Category B players on Day 1
Pawan Sehrawat - Raider - Rs. 2.6 crore - Telugu Titans
Siddharth Desai- Raider - Rs. 1 crore- Haryana Steelers
Ashu Malik - Raider- Rs. 96.25 lakh- Dabang Delhi K.C.
Meetu - Raider- Rs. 93 lakh- Dabang Delhi K.C.
Guman Singh- Raider - Rs 85 lakh - U Mumba
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