Down memory lane: Looking back at PKL Season 3

Patna Pirates won the first of their three consecutive titles this edition.

Pro Kabaddi League season 3 held in 2016 commenced soon after the completion of season 2 and the league was scheduled to be twice in 2016. Season 2 was scheduled to be held in January while season 4 was scheduled for July. This was done with the popularity the league received in the previous two seasons. Season 2 saw a tremendous jump in terms of viewership and social engagement among fans which led the league organizers to conduct the event twice a year. 

Star Performers

Record breaker Pardeep Narwal stamped his name this season representing Patna Pirates. Pardeep made his debut in season 2 representing Bengaluru Bulls but Randhir Singh Sehrawat couldn’t provide enough opportunities for Pardeep which made him shift sides in season 3 which turned out to be career-defining. Patna Pirates were the champions in season 3, beating the reigning champions U Mumba in the finals. This was the third successive time U Mumba reached the finals of PKL losing twice and winning once. 

Apart from Pardeep Narwal, another star was making his presence felt which is none other than Pawan Sehrawat who played for Bengaluru Bulls in season 3 scoring 45 raid points in 15 matches. Unlike Pardeep Narwal he started to make headlines only after PKL season 6.

Among the foreign players, Jang Kung Lee featured in the top 5 raiders list with the most raid points and this was the first time a foreign player is featuring in the raid points chart. Lee represented Bengal Warriors scoring 79 raid points in 15 matches and the South Korean was the lead raider for the side throughout the season.

Unlike the previous two seasons, no auction was conducted in season 3 but the players switched sides and as mentioned earlier Pardeep Narwal shifted from Bengaluru Bulls to Patna Pirates.

Top Raiders

Pardeep Narwal

Matches - 15 | Raid Points - 116

The dubki king under the guidance of Rohit Baliyan and captain Manpreet Singh helped Patna Pirates win their maiden PKL title. This was just the start for the star raider who went onto break records in the next seasons.

Rishank Devadiga

Matches - 16 | Raid Points - 106

Rishank Devadiga from Maharashtra represented U Mumba scoring 106 raid points. He was playing under Anup Kumar who couldn't replicate his form in season 3. Rishank took over the primary raiding role from Anup which turned out to be successful.

Rohit Kumar

Matches - 12 | Raid Points - 102

Rohit Kumar combined with Pardeep Narwal in the raiding department and turned out to be a successful right-left combo. This was the first successful season for Rohit Kumar in the PKL and was instrumental in the Patna Pirates claiming the trophy.

Top Defenders

Manjeet Chillar

Matches - 15 | Tackle Points - 61

Manjeet Chillar the cover defender was the top defender scoring 61 tackle points and 45 raid points. In terms of the total points scored in season 3, he occupies second place with 106 points. On average, Manjeet scored four tackle points and three raid points per match. He also became the top defender overall in PKL combining the stats of three seasons. Also Manjeet shifted from Bengaluru Bulls to Puneri Paltan.

Sandeep Narwal 

Matches - 14 | Tackle Points - 55

Sandeep Narwal represented Patna Pirates and this season scored 55 tackle points and nine raid points. His percentage of points scored in the raiding department went down but had a good season defending.

Surjeet Singh

Matches - 12 | Tackle Points - 48

Super 10s

Surjeet Singh - 5

Pardeep Narwal - 5

Rohit Kumar - 5

High 5s

Mohit Chillar - 6

Sandeep Narwal - 6

Manjeet Chillar - 5

Season 3 was the start of a golden run for Patna Pirates going on to win three successive titles (Seasons 3, 4, and 5).