PKL 2021 to begin on Dec 22, franchises to begin training camps from Oct 7

Franchises have started gearing up for PKL 2021 as the extravagant league is likely to begin on December 22 in Bengaluru. The stakeholders have started making preparations to set up a bio-secure bubble. The Pro Kabaddi teams have informed their players to assemble for training camps by the end of October.

A player from a title-winning franchise told Sportskeeda:

“We have been asked to self-quarantine ourselves and then join the team for the training camp. The league is starting on December 22.”

This year, PKL 2021 will be held in Kantaveerava Indoor Stadium – home of Bengaluru Bulls – due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Mashal Sports, owners of Pro Kabaddi League property, shortlisted three cities for PKL 2021 but eventually opted for Bengaluru as their best option.

“They had Jaipur, Ahmedabad and Bengaluru as their options. But due to logistical reasons and eventually Bengaluru was picked,” a franchise official said.

Sportskeeda has learnt that both Bengaluru Bulls and Telugu Titans are set to begin camp by the end of this week. Jaipur Pink Panther, on the other hand, will begin camp by mid-October.

The 12 franchises must ensure all players are fully vaccinated before they assemble 14-days before the start of PKL 2021.

Mashal Sports to take care of all logistics for PKL 2021

This year, preparations such as booking of hotels and creating of bio-bubble will be taken care of by Mashal Sports.

According to the sources, the 12 teams along with officials is expected to stay on premise with strict pandemic protocols to reduce COVID-19 risk. However, franchisees are skeptical about the idea as it will pose a different kind of challenge.

“Our biggest fear is how will they accommodate everyone in one place. How will they schedule training sessions for the 12 teams? Then there will be challenges of isolating players from other teams so that there is no passing of information and gameplans,” an official from another PKL team said.