“I received the support of my family and childhood coach and realized that I have to do something in the field of Kabaddi.” A small statement made by Naveen Kumar in an old interview is coming to life in the seventh season of Pro Kabaddi. The 19-year-old raider is the first player born in the 2000s to feature in the league and has already gone on to become a defender’s nightmare and Dabang Delhi’s superpower.

Though still a teenager, Naveen displays immense maturity on the mat, fighting for the well-being of the team rather than going for individual glory. Delhi’s coach Krishnan Kumar Hooda and captain Joginder Singh Narwal have played a pivotal role in defining and nurturing the abilities of the fleet-footed raider and the results have been quite evident for all to see.

Laying the groundwork

Naveen’s passion for the game has grown leaps and bounds since he received a call for trials from Dabang Delhi. What sets him apart is his uncanny ability to lure the defenders, rather than directly attacking them. He tempts the opposing defenders to attack him and then takes points on the counter. This is only possible because he possesses incredible speed and agility on the mat and applies these qualities to near perfection.

Though his signature move is the running-hand touch, the youngster is also known to execute the toe-touch and frog jump convincingly to take the defenders by surprise. Naveen’s performance from the sixth season has only ascended to a position of strength and has been the driving factor for Delhi’s improved performances. 

A numbers game

In his first PKL season with Delhi in 2018, Naveen became the second-youngest player in league history to score a Super 10 in just his fourth match. Over the course of the ongoing season, Naveen has already crossed the 200 raid points mark, a drastic improvement from his debut season which he ended with 177 points. Not just that! He has also etched his name in the history books by becoming the first player to register 13 consecutive Super 10’s in a single season, leaving behind the brilliant Pardeep Narwal.

A 10th Super 10 for @DabangDelhiKC's #10 Naveen Kumar saw them steal a win from the Panthers in the very end! What a season he’s having!

Keep watching #VIVOProKabaddi action, LIVE on Star Sports and Hotstar. #IsseToughKuchNahi #RivalryWeek pic.twitter.com/b5snv9mMXU

— ProKabaddi (@ProKabaddi) September 5, 2019

His phenomenal outing in the current season has made him one of the frontrunners to land the coveted PKL’s ‘Most Valuable Player’ award. The immaculate raider has also left Telugu Titans’ Siddharth Desai in his trail, going on to steal the limelight instead.

Due to his presence, Delhi have been able to find an adequate balance between offence and defence. With veteran defenders like Ravinder Pahal and Vishal Mane providing their years of experience at the back, the young raider gives stability to the attack by charging at the opponent’s defensive lines with sheer speed and strength.

The Delhi raider’s laurels so far have been credited to his humbleness and hard-working attitude and given his match-winning performances, he is surely equipped to reach greater heights in the near future.

Feature image courtesy: Star Sports & PKL

The rise of Pro Kabaddi has witnessed some great players coming into the foray and unleashing their talents at will. With the intent and raw untapped energy heavily concentrated among the young players, many have found their way into the starting seven of their teams, replacing the old guards who were once in the limelight.

These veterans now find their jobs at risk owing to the energy and strength that the upcoming and young players bring to the mat these days. The techniques of the game are being implemented at a quicker pace with the new generation bringing in new tactics to outclass the defenders, something left wanting from the original superstars of the game.

Players like Pawan Kumar Sehrawat and Naveen Kumar have stormed the record sheet with breathtaking numbers while veteran raiders such as Ajay Thakur and Rahul Chaudhari have struggled to find form. Once a shining star for Tamil Thalaivas, Thakur has managed to earn just 58 points in 13 matches so far which is completely astonishing given his meteoric performance in the previous two seasons.

The ‘Poster Boy’ Rahul Chaudhari has also faced a similar fate having faltered in the seventh season, building a podium of questions about his fitness on the mat. In his first 17 matches, Chaudhari has garnered just 108 raid points, his lowest score in the past four seasons.

The old warhorse, Surender Nada has also been on the receiving end owing to his inability to maintain fitness. Nada was ruled out before the season began in 2019 due to a hand injury he suffered last season. The Patna Pirates’ defender enjoyed a remarkable fifth season with the Haryana Steelers earning a total of 80 tackle points but was soon beaten by the pace of young raiders, who figured out a way to get out of his signature ‘ankle hold’ move. 

The crown jewel of a defender is his ability to block a raider through his innate strength and Manjeet Chhillar just seems to be an expert in that area. After posting a mammoth total of 106 points in the third season, Manjeet has failed to replicate a similar performance so far. His average tackle per match has gone down from 3.73 in the third season to a mere 2.33 in the ongoing seventh season. Despite all his raw strength, Manjeet has failed to create an impact and the game as it is now played at an express pace is becoming a hindrance for the defensive maestro.

ALL WORDS, NO ACTION! Sad to see the mighty Manjeet Chhillar going through this phase.

Photo by PKL | #manjeetchhillar #tamilthalaivas #IdhuNammaAatam #TamilThalaivas #VivoProKabaddi #Prokabaddi #Prokabaddi2019#ProKabaddileague #VivoPKL7 #TeamChennai #Kabaddi #Sportwalk pic.twitter.com/8dHYMMBiFW

— #Prokabaddi Fan Club (@ProKabaddiFC) September 22, 2019

You also have the eldest player in the league, the 44-year-old Dharmaraj Cheralathan, who showcases quality on both the left and right corner. Having played the sport for almost three decades, Dharmaraj has been moderately consistent in his outings. He has the discipline and an uncompromising attitude towards maintaining fitness which has made him a valuable player for his team. But at times, you witness the long-serving defender switch his methods and his performance takes a beating. In all these cases, one requires elasticity and swiftness to progress further which makes it difficult for most players to adapt.

However, the younger players are displaying variation in their performance and technique. They can attack from the right and left as well, their footwork is much better and their consistently high work rate on the mat gives favourable results for their respective teams.

“If there’s a new kid on the mat, I watch him keenly and learn his game to see the new techniques that he’s brought into the sport," says Manjeet Chhillar. The established authorities are aware of the need of the hour but to make a transition so quickly might be a task left unaccomplished.

Feature image courtesy: Star Sports & PKL

A veteran of Pro Kabaddi, Rahul Chaudhari is regarded as the ‘Showman’ of the league. Having played for Telugu Titans in the first six seasons, Chaudhari has always stood neck-to-neck with the league’s most successful raider Pardeep Narwal with his domineering performances. But despite a glittering career, Chaudhari’s dipping form over the past few PKL seasons have taken the limelight off him in recent times.

The thrill is gone

During his first season in the league, Chaudhari racked up a total of 161 points, just eight fewer of the league’s ‘Most Valuable Player’ Anup Kumar. This was a testament to his raiding abilities where he could take even the fiercest of defences down. Since the first three seasons had fewer number of matches, Chaudhari’s work rate was high and effective but since the fifth season, his explosiveness has gone for a toss and the agility is nowhere to be seen.

His speed is no longer a big concern for the opponents as his iconic ‘running hand touch’ seemed to have lost its frizzle. He has lacked awareness and is easily cornered against quality defenders. It seems to be an inescapable rut for the star raider.  

A lost virtue of versatility

Probably one of the reasons Titans replaced him was because of fading imagination on the mat. Chaudhari was Titans’ go-to-raider, steering them to victory on multiple occasions but his style of play was becoming predictable.

In crux situations, Chaudhari has been ineffective as his average of successful raids has gone down from 7.22 in the fifth season to 5.25 in the ongoing seventh season so far. His huge reputation of turning matches on their heads has taken a hit and the trait of versatility has gone out of the window.

Dip in Raid points

Given his sturdy built and the advantage of height coming into play, Chaudhari was able to outclass some of the most top-notch defenders in the game, but even that has taken a hit in recent times. The average raid points in the fourth season were above nine but in the ongoing seventh season, the raid points have dried up, leaving the average hanging at 6.56 from his first 16 matches.

The 26-year-old’s glittering career has been in descent since the past three seasons but the fleet-footed raider’s uncanny ability to spot and eliminate a defender still persists, which gives his fans hope that a comeback is possibly on the cards.

Feature image courtesy: Star Sports & PKL