Top unsold players in Pro Kabaddi League season 8 auction

Some notable figures did not find any buyers ahead of the upcoming season.

The auction for the eighth season of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) took place in Mumbai recently. All the teams were quite busy bidding for their targets. The league is coming back to action after a long gap and fans are hungry for some kabaddi action.

The players and their respective teams are eager to get on the mat and showcase their talents. There was a huge splash of money through bidding in the auction by franchises. Pardeep Narwal became the most expensive purchase during the auction.

UP Yoddhas paid 1 crore and 65 lakhs for his services, making him the most expensive player in the history of the competition. A total of 190 players found buyers in the auction which took place recently. However, not every player was lucky, as some names remained unsold ahead of the eighth season of the Pro Kabaddi League.

Here are some of those notable names that did not find any buyers in the auction:

Vishal Mane

Vishal Mane is one of the most exceptional defenders in the PKL. He has scored 197 tackle points in over 128 matches in total. He has eight high-fives to his record and was part of Dabang Delhi last season. Vishal scored 28 points in 25 matches for the outfit.

The fifth and sixth seasons of the Pro Kabaddi League were good for the player. He scored 39 and 38 tackle points respectively in those campaigns. However, a disappointing performance last season prompted Dabang Delhi to drop the player and he did not find any buyers.

Mohit Chillar

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cuYpQBoC_gM

Mohit Chillar is one of the unsold players. The right-corner player has played for five teams in the Pro Kabaddi League, impressing for some of them. He was the defender with the most high-fives during the third season. He also surprised many by scoring five super tackles in the first season. Most importantly, Chillar was crucial in helping U Mumba win the title in the second season. 

He did not find any buyers too during the auction. Perhaps disappointing performances in the past few seasons hurt his chances.

Ran Singh

A brilliant all-rounder like Ran Singh also went unsold in the auction. He is regarded as a brilliant player in the Pro Kabaddi League but it is surprising to see him without a team. He was playing for Tamil Thalaivas until last season, where he scored 46 points in 21 matches. Despite that, Singh was released and did not find a buyer in the auction. 

His overall performance shows that he has scored 335 points in 120 total games. He can be a great all-rounder for any team in the division, but he remained unsold.

Nilesh Salunke

Nilesh Salunke will be missing from action after playing for Jaipur Pink Panthers until last season. No team decided to bid for him during the auction after the Pink Panthers released the player. 

He was a great performer as a raider for Telugu Titans during the fourth and fifth seasons of the PKL. He scored 98 points in 21 games during the fifth season. Salunke made three Super 10s that season too. He could have been a great addition as an second raider. Unfortunately, no suitor came forward to sign the player.

Rohit Baliyan

Rohit Baliyan is one of the experienced players in the division and has been playing since the second season of the competition. He scored 74 raid points in 17 games while playing for Dabang Delhi during the fifth season as well. He was playing for U Mumba until last season, where he scored 54 points in 18 games. 

His raid percentage reduced to 33 last season and this was the reason which convinced U Mumba to release the experienced player. Although his overall raiding percentage is still over 40%, the player could not find any buyers in the auction.

Shabeer Bapu

Shabeer Bapu is a seasoned Pro Kabaddi League player, plying his trade since the first season in the competition. The raider is an expert at tricking defenders, which helped him guide U Mumba to a league win during the second season. He scored 66 raid points in the first season of the Pro Kabaddi League and earned a lot of praise.

However, the last two seasons have been a contrast for the player. Playing for the Thalaivas the last term, he managed only 29 points in 14 games. Perhaps the underwhelming performance was the reason behind Thalaivas releasing the player ahead of the auction. Shabeer Bapu could not find a suitor during the auction and will not be part of the competition for the first time.

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