Haryana Steelers' predicted starting seven for PKL 9

Team has a mixture of youth and experience in both raiding and defense. 

Haryana Steelers missed out on a spot in the eliminators by just two points the previous season of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL), eventually finishing seventh in the league stage points table. Had they won their last league game against Patna Pirates last season they would have qualified for the eliminators. But they lost a close game by 30-27 and missed their opportunity. In the new season they would definitely look to improve their performance from the last season. 

They have assembled a squad which is well balanced and looks strong on the paper. They bought Joginder Narwal, Rakesh Kumar and K Prapanjan in the auctions held last month. These three 

bring immense experience with them. At the same time the Steelers retained as many as seven defenders in their unit. Out of the seven, Naveen, Monu, Sunny Sehrawat and Harsh were retained as New Young Players (NYP).

They also have a new coach in the form of Manpreet Singh who has a pretty successful record in PKL both as a captain and as a coach. 

Manpreet was the captain when Patna Pirates won its first title. He then went on to coach Gujarat Giants in two consecutive finals. He is yet to win the tournament as a coach so he would be raring to add that to his list of achievements. Let us take a look at the probable starting 7 of the Haryana Steelers; 

Raiders 

Haryana Steelers went all out to sign Manjeet. He was purchased for Rs. 80 lakhs. Last season, he had an outstanding season with the Tamil Thalaivas, scoring six Super 10s and five Super Raids. Vinay will be the other key raider to keep an eye on, as the enigmatic raider secured 51 raid points, not to mention 125 raid points he scored, the season before.

K Prapanjan has been a veteran since Season 2 and a two-time PKL champion who brings a wealth of experience to the table. The franchise would hope that he can use all his experience for the team. 

Meetu showed glimpses of what he can do in the last season and therefore he was retained by the team. He would want to have a better season too. 

Defenders

Defense is the stronger suit of the Haryana Steelers. Mohit is expected to remain the first-choice pick at right cover after a stellar previous season in which he scored 42 tackle points. Jaideep on the left cover appears to be a lock after claiming 5 High 5s and 5 Super Tackles for the franchise in the previous edition. All eyes will be on Amirhossein Bastami, the most expensive player on Day 1 of the Player Auction from Iran. He was crucial in helping Iran win the World Junior Kabaddi Championship title in 2019. Another veteran Nitin Rawal, a left corner specialist was also picked by the team. He can also contribute to the raiding department when needed. 

Here is the probable starting seven list:

Raiders: Manjeet, Vinay, K Prapanjan

Defenders: Jaideep, Mohit, Amirhossein Bastami

All-rounder: Nitin Rawal