"Form over reputation"- U Mumba CEO Suhail Chandhok explains why Asian Games gold medalist Vishal Bhardwaj initially remained unsold at PKL Auction

U Mumba CEO Suhail Chandhok explained the probable reasons behind big names like Vishal Bhardwaj, Rahul Chaudhari, and Deepak Niwas Hooda going unsold at the PKL Auction 2023.

The Pro Kabaddi 2023 Auction took place earlier this week. Many fans were surprised to see Vishal, who won the gold medal with Team India at Asian Games 2023, remain unsold initially. He was later picked up by Dabang Delhi KC.

Similarly, Rahul went unsold twice before Jaipur Pink Panthers signed him. Speaking exclusively with Sportskeeda, U Mumba CEO Suhail Chandhok gave his two cents on big names going unsold and said:

"Yeah, I'll give you a perfect answer. The thing is make our Twitterverse trollers and Instagram haters understand that what you see on kabaddi court, the big names, only that will not get you. What we look for as teams is not what you guys see on Twitter and Instagram."

"It is the behavior pattern of a player. It is what they bring to dressing room. It is what they bring to team me. It is what they bring beyond the court. So I think when you look at all of these aspects clearly something has rubbed people wrongly somewhere, who knows, I don’t know," he added.

Chandhok further explained that apart from the aforementioned things, the recent form of the players also matters more to the team than the reputation of the player.

"But I just think that this is why you have to understand the teams look for things that are not just on the mat. You can be an India player. You can be a top player, Rahul Chaudhari went unsold twice and then came back. Same way, Deepak Hooda unsold," he continued.

"Everyone shouts about it. Everyone will be like, 'Why didn't U Mumba pick him. Why didn't Puneri Paltan pick him?' Whatever it is, but there is a reason.

"For me as I said I will always prefer form the reputation. It is not just about the names, it is about form over reputation and I think that is the most important thing to always do," he explained.

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"Haters will hate, trollers will troll"- Suhail Chandhok thinks Pro Kabaddi teams approached the auction in a mature way

Suhail Chandhok further mentioned that the people who troll the team management for picking any other player at the auction instead of their favorite player did not matter to the teams.

"I think it tells you a little bit about the mentality of teams. We are mature as a team team to say you know haters will hate, trollers will troll. We will back our process," the U Mumba CEO affirmed.

Suhail Chandhok also spoke about U Mumba's performance at the Pro Kabaddi 2023 Auction. The team's CEO was delighted with the picks on Day 1. He said:

"Honestly, I think Day 1 went better than we thought. We didn't think we'll get Mahender (Singh) in the mix at all at that price. I think Girish (Ernak) at 20 lakh was an absolute steal. So for us, to get Girish at 20 lakh is the best thing we could have asked for. I think we have a very complete defense."

"To get Girish at base, we didn't account for that and then to back up straight back to back with Mahender. Our defence was complete. We have Surinder and Mahender, who play from Himachal. They know each other really really well.

"They're great friends and for that combination to come together, we always speak of Jodis in kabaddi and we got now Surinder-Mahender," he added.

Highlighting how the U Mumba team have a complete defense now, Suhail Chandhok concluded:

"We've got Rinku in the right corner, we've got a young guy in Sombir actually in our squad already from the Khelo India Games. He is amazing. He sits there and Girish sits there. So that's an attacking defense."

U Mumba CEO Suhail Chandhok and the rest of the team management have formed an excellent squad for PKL 2023. It will be interesting to see if the team can become champions for the first time since the second season.