The Pro Kabaddi 2021 auction saw youngsters generating a lot of interest with many teams going all-out to acquire the services of their desired players. While Arjun Deshwal’s name got heads turning in the auction room, Pardeep Narwal’s highest bid by U.P. Yoddha set a new all-time PKL record.
Here, we take a look at Pro Kabaddi’s costliest players from the Season 8 auction.
Pardeep Narwal - INR 1.65 crore
Pardeep Narwal’s INR 1.65 crore bid broke the record for the all-time most expensive player in Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) history. The raider was bagged by U.P. Yoddha after Patna Pirates, Pardeep’s former team decided against using the FBM card for him. Pardeep is the only player in PKL to score over 1000 raid points and has been in the top two for most point scorers since the third edition of PKL.
The addition of the Dubki King will be a welcome boost for U.P. Yoddha as they eye a maiden appearance in the PKL final in the upcoming season.
Siddharth Desai - INR 1.30 crore
Telugu Titans bagged Siddharth Desai for INR 1.30 crore after using the Final Bid Match (FBM) card for him. Siddharth scores 10 points on average in every game and has close to 450 points in his short PKL career spanning two seasons.
Telugu Titans have not reached the knockouts since PKL 4 and will pin their hopes of going further in Season 8 on their biggest recruit Siddharth ‘Baahubali’ Desai.
Arjun Deshwal - INR 96 lakh
Former U Mumba player Arjun Deshwal set the auction tables on fire in the Pro Kabaddi Season 8 auction. The inaugural PKL champions Jaipur Pink Panthers made an INR 96 lakh bid to buy the Uttarakhand-based raider.
Arjun who played his first full season in PKL last time around impressed with his temperament under pressure and scored three Super 10s. The Services’ player will be one to watch out for this season.
Manjeet - INR 92 lakh
Young raider Manjeet created an intense bidding war on the second day of the auctions with as many as four teams going all-out to secure his services. However, Tamil Thalaivas had the last laugh as they outbid their competitors with a massive INR 92 lakh bid. The lanky raider was the top performer for Puneri Paltan in the previous edition of the tournament and has a career not-out percentage of 74 in PKL.
Sachin Tanwar - INR 84 lakh
Like Manjeet, Sachin Tanwar too garnered a lot of interest with Patna Pirates, Jaipur Pink Panthers, Bengaluru Bulls and U.P. Yoddha, all involved in a four-way bidding war. However, three-time champions Patna Pirates managed to buy him for INR 84 lakh. Sachin, who joined PKL in Season 5, won the Best Debutant of the Season award at the age of 18 years. In his three PKL seasons with Gujarat Giants so far, the raider has already scored 16 Super 10’s.
Most expensive players in Pro Kabaddi 2021
- Pardeep Narwal to U.P. Yoddha - INR 1.65 crore
- Siddharth Desai to Telugu Titans - INR 1.30 crore
- Arjun Deshwal to Jaipur Pink Panthers - INR 96 lakh
- Manjeet to Tamil Thalaivas - INR 92 lakh
- Sachin to Patna Pirates - INR 84 lakh
- Rohit Gulia to Haryana Steelers - INR 83 lakh
- Chandran Ranjit to Bengaluru Bulls - INR 80 lakh
- PO Surjeet Singh to Tamil Thalaivas - INR 75 lakh
- Ravinder Pahal to Gujarat Giants - INR 74 lakh
- Shrikant Jadhav to U.P. Yoddha - INR 72 lakh
Featured Photo: Pro Kabaddi League
