PKL 11 Auction: Bengaluru Bulls stave off intense bidding war to sign Jai Bhagwan
Jai Bhagwan last represented U Mumba in the PKL.
All-rounder Jai Bhagwan was picked up by the Bengaluru Bulls, for a whopping price of Rs 63 lakhs at the PKL 11 auction on Friday.
The auctions are being held on 15th and 16th August in Mumbai. With only 88 players retained across all 12 franchisees (including 22 Elite Retained Players), it has been a busy time on the tables for everybody.
Raiders and defenders alike earned hefty contracts, as teams aimed to use their Rs 5 Cr budget appropriately to build a well-balanced team for the upcoming Pro Kabaddi League season. As many as eight players crossed the one crore mark, with Sachin Tanwar being the most expensive buy at Rs 2.15 Cr, for the Tamil Thalaivas.
Jai Bhagwan was another such player, who managed to earn a massive pay-cheque, going into the upcoming season.
Also Read: PKL 11 Auction Live Updates Day 2
Bhagwan had a middling season at U Mumba last time around. In fact, he couldn’t get too many opportunities with V Viswanth being their first choice for the role. However, with the team’s fortunes as well as the form of various players dwindling, the lad from Dasgaon, Rajasthan got a total of 13 matches.
He couldn’t really have the impact he would have wanted to, scoring 50 points in total (47 raid points and 3 tackle points). The Mumbai-based franchisee ended tenth on the table.
Expectedly, the all-rounder was released before the auctions for the eleventh season.
Bhagwan, who registered himself with a base price of Rs 13 lakhs, was included in the Category C Domestic Raiders. An intense bidding war ensued between the Bulls and the Bengal Warriors. However, in the end, the former reigned supreme.
Bhagwan made his debut in the PKL, in the nineth edition of the tournament. He was bought by U Mumba for Rs 10 lakhs. While he was a tad inconsistent, he showed a lot of promise, with his skills (especially in offense) mesmerizing a few pundits. He scored 82 points in 19 matches, with 75 raid points and 7 tackle points.
His team, however, had a disappointing season finishing nineth in the table. Nevertheless, the management decided to keep faith in the talented player for one more season, before eventually releasing him ahead of the upcoming season.
Bengaluru Bulls have managed to form a strong team at the table. They do have the right balance of youth and experience, and have a variety of players, with different skillsets to choose from, while picking the starting VII.
Jai Bhagwan could find it hard to nail a spot upfront, with the squad consisting of the most prolific raider in PKL history- Pardeep Narwal, and a number of exciting raiders like Ajinkya Pawar, Sushil and Akshit. However, Bhagwan could be an X-factor due to his skills in defence.
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