PKL 12 Auction: Bengaluru Bulls sign Akash Shinde for 53.10 lakh after intense bidding war

The Bengaluru Bulls made the highest bid of Rs. 53.10 lakhs for Akash Shinde.

The Bengaluru Bulls secured the services of raider Akash Shinde at a price of Rs. 53.10 lakhs at the Pro Kabaddi League Season 12 auction (PKL 12) on Sunday. This was the first time that he entered the auctions, after being picked up as a New Young Player by the Puneri Paltan in the eighth edition. Akash has scored 296 raid points in 57 matches at a strike rate of 56.16%, with a total of nine super 10s.

Today marks the second day of the PKL 12 auctions, which are being held in Mumbai. A total of 83 players, which include 25 Elite Retained Players (ERP), 23 Retained Young Players (RYP) and 35 New Young Players (NYP), were retained prior to the event. This is unarguably the biggest auction in recent years, with some of the biggest names currently in the world of kabaddi, including Pawan Sehrawat, Naveen Kumar, Arjun Deshwal, Devank Dalal, and Mohammadreza Shadloui, going under the hammer.

Starting as a back-up raider, Akash Shinde got a much bigger role when Aslam Inamdar was ruled out due to an injury and Mohit Goyat’s form started dipping in the previous edition. He eventually secured a total of 92 raid points in 19 matches, at a success rate of 46.7%, with two super 10s. After a stunning start to the season, the PKL 10 champions lost momentum and eventually finished eighth on the table, failing to qualify for the first time since the seventh edition.

The bidding for the 24-year-old Category C raider (with base price Rs. 13 lakhs) was initiated by the Dabang Delhi and the Gujarat Giants. U Mumba came in next, with the Bengaluru Bulls coming in later when the amount stood at Rs. 44 lakhs. They eventually managed to overcome a stiff fight from the Dabang Delhi, who made a re-entry at Rs. 46.40 lakhs, to sign the player into their squad.

A look at Akash Shinde’s PKL Journey

Akash Shinde did nothing noteworthy in his debut season with Puneri Paltan, scoring 9 raid points in 3 games. PKL 9 proved to be his breakthrough edition, though, as he had to become the lead raider, with both Aslam and Mohit being ruled out by virtue of injuries. He accumulated 139 raid points in 22 matches at a rate of 62.61%, as the side sensationally reached the final before losing narrowly to the Jaipur Pink Panthers.

Having to again take the backseat in the following edition, the lad from Nashik, Maharashtra, took the field in just 13 outings, scoring 56 raid points. The Paltan managed to finally go all the way, clinching their first-ever title. In the eleventh instalment of the league, the Indian international was reasonably impressive.

Having been picked up by the season six champions, Akash Shinde will have to shoulder a lot of responsibility, considering the team lacks established names.

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