Top 10 biggest talking points of Kabaddi in 2024
The popularity of Kabaddi is increasing with time in the world of sports.
Kabaddi is a great game which originated in India long ago. After many years, it is getting the recognition it deserves and has a long way to go. A lot of credit certainly goes to the biggest Kabaddi league in the world, the Pro Kabaddi League, which started in 2014 and has grown phenomenally over the years.
It has been featured in the Asian Games since 1990, as far as the world stage is concerned. However, there is still a massive margin to grow for the sport on the world stage. Here are the 10 biggest talking points we witnessed in 2024.
Also Read: PKL 11: Top five best debutant defenders of Pro Kabaddi 2024
Haryana Steelers lifted their maiden PKL trophy
Manpreet Singh’s Haryana Steelers won their maiden PKL title after struggling through the eliminators a few times. The Steelers finished as the runner-up in Season 10 and triumphed in Season 11. Singh backed his team fabulously and kept the foundation of this spectacular win by joining together a spectacular squad in the auction.
Mohmmadreza Shadloui turned out to be the best defender once again with 82 tackle points under his name. Moreover, he also scored 57 raid points and emerged as a brilliant all-rounder for his team. The raiding duo, Vinay and Shivam Patare, once again played stunningly and supported each other throughout the season, with Vishal Tate playing a cameo role.
The Steelers did a great job on defence and had one of the most successful defensive units this season with 290 tackle points. They have opened their account in the PKL and looks like they have a bright future with a well-built squad.
PKL Melbourne Raid took place
Pro Kabaddi League introduced the PKL Melbourne Raid this year. Before the final day of the PKL 11, PKL reached Melbourne where legends and a few current players took part in a match followed by another match, where Pro Kabaddi All Stars against the host nation’s Aussie Raiders. The matches were played in the John Cain Arena.
In match 1, Rakesh Kumar’s PKL All Star Masters played against Ajay Thakur’s PKL All Star Mavericks in the nail-biting match which ended with the Mavericks defeating the Masters by 41-39. In the second match, Pro Kabaddi All Stars defeated the Aussie Raiders comfortably by 46-28.
Indian kabaddi legends stepped onto the court after ages
PKL Melbourne Raid got the Kabaddi legends from India to take their positions once again on the Kabaddi court. Ajay Thakur, Anup Kumar, Rakesh Kumar, Jeeva Kumar, Sandeep Narwal, Ran Singh, and Deepak Hooda participated in Melbourne and played their hearts out once again.
They played like they never left out and looked incredibly at the centre with a full-packed John Cain Arena applauding for them.
Also Read: PKL 11: Top five best debutant raiders of Pro Kabaddi 2024
The beginning of UPKL
The land of traditions, Uttar Pradesh, began the Uttar Pradesh Kabaddi League to promote our own invented sport. It was played with the utmost thrill when Arjun Deshwal’s Lucknow Lions lifted the first title of the league. Players like Arjun Deshwal, Abhijeet Malik, Vinay, Ashu Singh, etc. were involved in this league to make it a success.
Pardeep Narwal continues his poor form
Pardeep Narwal is the most celebrated raider in the history of the Pro Kabaddi League. However, his recent form has been tremendously dipping. He was appointed as the Bengaluru Bulls’ captain last season, but he couldn’t perform even nearly what was expected of him. The team stood at the bottom of the table with a disastrous performance. Whereas, Narwal scored just 111 raid points in 20 matches with a success rate of 48.05%.
In the last season, Narwal had 122 raid points in 17 matches, whereas in season 9 he scored 220 points in 22 matches with a success rate of 59.13%. The dip can be assessed with these numbers. It will be crucial to see if he gets himself into the auction next season, and if he does, will any team pick him in the next season?
Newbies impressed the fans in the PKL 11
The big names were always on the cards to play an influential role in the PKL 11. However, there were some stunning performances by the less experienced players which became the crucial turnover this season. Devank and Ayan were the two most spectacular players of this season. These two youngsters contributed phenomenally to what the Pirates achieved this year.
On the other hand, Shivam Patare proved to be exactly what Haryana Steelers needed this year to cross that line and lift the trophy. Defenders like Nitesh Kumar, Himanshu Jaglan, Sagar Sethpal and Sandeep Deswal were also impressed with their performances.
Pardeep Narwal crossed 1800 Raid Points
The Dubki King, Pardeep Narwal reached the milestone of 1800 raid points this season. The record looks unbreakable as Narwal became the first player to reach this milestone. Narwal took 190 matches to create this record.
The record creator crossed 1800 points in the Bengaluru Bulls‘ last match of the season and was hailed by all the players on the court when he scored his 1800th point by sneaking in a bonus point. Do you think this record can be broken?
Women’s Kabaddi World Cup
The Women’s Kabaddi World Cup is all set to start in Bihar in March 2025. Bihar is going to host the Women’s World Cup for the second time. They hosted it for the first time in 2012. It will be held at Rajgir Sports Academy in which 14 countries are expected to participate.
Also Read: PKL 11: Top 10 raiders with most Super 10s in Pro Kabaddi 2024
Kabaddi has been officially included in the Asian Youth Games 2025
After a long gap of 12 years, the 3rd Asian Youth Games is going to start in the year 2025. It will take place in Bahrain from October 22 to October 31. Furthermore, the 3rd edition is coming with a new addition in 2025. Kabaddi has been officially added to the Asian Youth Games for the first time and the fans are thrilled about it.
Sunil Kumar became the most successful PKL captain
Sunil Kumar has been a stellar player throughout his career. He has also been one of the most successful defenders. However, in Pro Kabaddi League 2024, he got a new record in his name. He became the most successful captain in the PKL.
In the third leg of this season, he achieved this milestone and gave the credit to Anup Kumar and Ajay Thakur who helped him become such a massive force as a captain. Kumar overtook Fazel Atrachali to get this recognition and at the end of the season, he has 77 wins under his name as a captain.
Which kabaddi news got you most excited and why? Let us know in the comment section.
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