PKL 9: Coaches of all teams for upcoming Pro Kabaddi League season

These figures will hope to lead their respective sides to ultimate glory when the tournament starts.

The Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) is full of entertainment and fabulous kabaddi action. The premier kabaddi tournament, which will return for its Season 9 in October, sees the top talent, both domestic and foreign, represent various teams. This makes the competition heavily competitive and very unpredictable. There is hardly any difference on-paper between the teams and in such cases, coaches play a massive role.

The role of a coach is significant, as they lineup the correct set of players, formulate strategies, guide the team in the auction and ultimately have the responsibility to deliver success. It is imperative to have a coach with experience and who is a leader that gets the best out of the players.

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In the upcoming season of the PKL, all franchises have notable names when it comes to employing coaches for their teams. Here is a look at the list of coaches in Season 9 of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL):

Bengal Warriors – Kasinathan Baskaran

Bengal Warriors have put their faith in the hands of Kasinathan Baskaran for PKL 9. He replaces BC Ramesh who took the outfit to the title in 2019. The 2016 World Cup-winning India coach has worked with the Tamil Thalaivas in the past. He returns to the league after a four-year hiatus.

Bengaluru Bulls – Randhir Singh Sehrawat

Bengaluru Bulls were a strong team last season. They reached the semi-final after navigating through the league phase and the eliminator. Randhir Singh Sehrawat is the head coach of the team for PKL 9. He has been at the mantle since the beginning of the league and guided the Bulls to the title in Season 6.

Dabang Delhi KC – Krishan Hooda

Dabang Delhi will enter the season as defending champions of the Pro Kabaddi League. Krishan Hooda is one of the most experienced figures in Indian kabaddi and will hope to use his expertise to help the squad perform well. In order to retain the title, the coach will play a key role yet again.

Gujarat Giants – Ram Mehar Singh

Gujarat Giants have made a big statement by recruiting Ram Mehar Singh as the coach. The former gold medal winner with India at the 1998 and 2002 Asian Games will aim to guide the team to the PKL title. He took Patna Pirates to the title in 2017 and reached the final last season with the outfit. 

Haryana Steelers – Manpreet Singh

Manpreet Singh will lead the Haryana Steelers as the head coach in the PKL. The veteran player won gold with the Indian team at the 2007 Kabaddi World Cup and represented the country at the 2002 and 2006 Asian Games. He is also a former PKL winner with the Pirates.

Puneri Paltan – BC Ramesh

Puneri Paltan will rely on the expert care of BC Ramesh. The former Bengal Warriors head coach takes over the team from Anup Kumar and took the outfit to the PKL title in 2019. Back in Season 5, Ramesh was the head coach of the Paltan and the team finished second in the table under his leadership.

Jaipur Pink Panthers – Sanjeev Baliyan

Sanjeev Baliyan will continue to lead the Jaipur Pink Panthers in the upcoming season. The former U Mumba head coach will hope to finish better than eighth place in the league table from the last campaign. He is a very experienced figure and a former PKL winner with Patna Pirates.

Tamil Thalaivas – J Udaya Kumar

J Udaya Kumar will retain his place as the head coach of the Tamil Thalaivas in the upcoming season. The outfit finished in 11th place last season and will look to have a better performance in Season 9 of the PKL. Kumar is a respected figure in kabaddi and took over the Thalaivas in 2019.

Patna Pirates – Ravi Shetty

Ravi Shetty has been appointed as the head coach of the Patna Pirates following the departure of Ram Mehar Singh. The outfit reached the final last year but lost the title to Dabang Dehli in an epic clash. Ravi Shetty has experience of over two decades as a coach and will have big shoes to fill.

Telugu Titans – Manjeet Chhillar (Assistant Coach)

In the absence of a head coach, for now, Manjeet Chillar will act as the Assistant Coach at Telugu Titans. The outfit finished bottom in the league table and has a difficult task to shed the failings of last season. During the previous campaign, Chillar was essential for Dabang Delhi in their journey to winning the PKL title.

U Mumba – Anil Chaprana

Anil Chaprana is the head coach of U Mumba for season 9 of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL). He was the offensive coach last season. He joined in Season 8 in U Mumba as an offensive coach.

UP Yoddhas – Jasveer Singh

UP Yoddhas will again be under the expert guidance of veteran Jasveer Singh. He first took the charge of the outfit during season six. Last year, despite finishing third in the table and reaching the semifinal, his team could not reach the expected levels because of the unpredictable form of star player Pardeep Narwal. It will be interesting to see how the coach marshalls his troops in PKL season 9.