Pro Kabaddi 2019: Predicting the starting 7 for the Tamil Thalaivas

The seventh edition of Vivo Pro Kabaddi is all set to start with a bang on 20th July 2019. The Gachibowli Indoor Stadium in Hyderabad is ready to host the first leg of seventh Pro Kabaddi season. The seventh season will see all the twelve teams play each other twice in the group stage.

Tamil Thalaivas was one out of four teams that debuted back in Season 5. The team was named as the underdogs of Season 5. Under the leadership of Ajay Thakur, they defeated some big names during their debut season. In Season 6, Tamil Thalaivas looked the strongest on paper with a mixture of experience and youth. But they failed to work as a unit.

In PKL 7, Tamil Thalaivas will play their first match against Telugu Titans on 21st July in a southern derby. Their home leg will start on 17th August in Chennai and will end on 23rd August. Tamil Thalaivas signed 17 players in their squad with Ajay Thakur, Manjeet Chhillar and Victor Onyango Obiero as their retentions.

Rahul Chaudhari became the highest-paid player for them with ₹.94 lakhs. Shabeer Bappu (₹.10 lakhs) will also represent the Thalaivas. A new corner combination will be there as the Thalaivas has purchased Ran Singh (₹.55 lakhs) and Mohit Chhillar (₹.45 lakhs).

With Vivo Pro Kabaddi 2019 just two days away, here is a look at how the Tamil Thalaivas could line up for the first match of the season.

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Right Corner: Mohit Chhillar

Mohit Chhillar will be expected to do better for Thalaiavs.

One of the most successful right corners in Pro Kabaddi, Mohit Chhillar debuted with U Mumba back in edition 1. He was the part of the Mumbai-franchise's season 2 title-winning squad. After season 3, he was the highest purchase for Bengaluru Bulls in season 4.

Now, Railways player Mohit will don the blue jersey of Tamil Thalaivas in PKL 7, after moving to through different franchises like Haryana Steelers (season 5) and Jaipur Pink Panthers (season 6). Mohit has 240 tackle points in 91 matches with an average of 2.41 tackle points.

Currently, Mohit's form is not good as he had a forgettable season with Jaipur Pink Panthers last time around.

But he is a skillful defender who can anchor any defensive setup. His defensive partnership with Ran Singh would be crucial for the Thalaivas.

Right In: Ajay Thakur

Ajay Thakur will represent the Thalaivas for third consecutive time.

Ajay Thakur is one of the best raiders in Pro Kabaddi history. He is the leader who loves to lead his team from the front. Ajay Thakur, who is the captain of Indian Kabaddi team, has experience of playing Kabaddi at the international level.

Ajay made his Pro Kabaddi debut with Bengaluru Bulls in the inaugural PKL season. After two seasons he shifted to Puneri Paltan. From the last two seasons, he is part of the Thalaivas squad.

Talking about his numbers, they are sky-high. Ajay is the third best raider in Pro Kabaddi history with 732 raid points in 102 matches. Ajay has 155 do or die raid points, the most by any raider in Pro Kabaddi.

Ajay is expected to get support from Rahul Chaudhari while raiding. He will look to form a good partnership with Chaudhari.

Right Cover: Ponaparthiban Subramanian

Ponaparthiban Subramanian (extreme left) while trying to tackle the raider.

Ponparthiban Subramanian made his VIVO Pro Kabaddi debut back in Season 5 where he represented Tamil Thalaivas. A right cover defender from Tamil Nadu, Ponparthiban provided decent support to his cover partner Manjeet Chhillar and helped the Thalaivas' defence.

In a match against Telugu Titans, Ponparthiban tackled Nilesh Salunkhe thrice with precise body blocks and ankle holds. He scored seven tackle points in the same encounter and proved his mettle as a superb right cover.

Overall, Ponparthiban scored 17 tackle points in 12 matches at an average of 1.42 tackle points. With a single High 5 to his name, he scored with a tackle strike rate of 33.33%.

The team management will heavily rely upon Ponparthiban as he'll look to up his game from last season and improve his numbers to book a permanent spot in the team.

Center: Rahul Chaudhari

Rahul has 876 points to his name.

Known as the Poster Boy of Indian Kabaddi, Rahul Chaudhari marked his debut with Telugu Titans in the inaugural season. He was part of Telugu Titans for six seasons. For the first time in his career, Rahul will represent another franchise.

When you look at the stats, Rahul is proved to be the best Pro Kabaddi player in the history of the league. Rahul currently stands as the player with most total points in Pro Kabaddi history (876).

He has scored 825 raid points in 100 matches. Rahul averages 8.25 raid points per match with 36 Super10s up for grabs. He is a perfectionist in running hand touches and taking bonuses from the corner.

Rahul is one of the few players who can single-handedly turn a game around with his quick and consistent raids. Undoubtedly, he will be a go-to-man for the Thalaivas.

Left Cover: Manjeet Chhillar

Manjeet is the first defender to clinch 300 tackle points.

Manjeet Chhillar is regarded as the 'Best All-Rounder' in the world with his raiding and defensive capabilities. He is the player who can single-handedly turn the match with his all-round performance.

Manjeet is arguably the best left cover defender in the world. He is the only defender to reach 300 tackle points mark in Pro Kabaddi history. He has 302 tackle points in 92 matches. Also, Manjeet has 220 raid points to his name.

His frontal blocks and dashes are a thing of beauty. Sometimes, he executes a double thigh hold to tackle the raider.

Manjeet has the slowest footwork in terms of raiding, however, he can score a point with his toe touches and running kicks as well.

Manjeet will play as a defender only. But if the time comes, he will be seen raiding too. His game will be crucial for Tamil Thalaivas in the upcoming campaign.

Left In: Shabeer Bappu

Shabeer Bappu will play as a third raider.

The game-changer for U Mumba in Pro Kabaddi Season 2 final, Shabeer Bappu played a vital role for the team to win their first title with an epic comeback in the match.

A renowned player from Kerala, Shabeer Bappu has represented U Mumba (Season 1, 2, 3, and 5), Jaipur Pink Panthers (Season 4) and Dabang Delhi K.C. (Season 6) in the past editions.

Shabeer's breakout season was the first with U Mumba where he was a do or die specialist for the team. He scored 66 raid points in 10 matches averaging 6.6 raid points. He has played as a raider during crucial situations where he shuffles around the court to quickly steal a point off the covers.

Shabeer Bappu also has four consecutive appearances in VIVO Pro Kabaddi finals from Season 1 to Season 4. He was the captain of Karnataka in 66th Senior National Kabaddi Championship. Overall, Shabeer Bappu has 191 raid points in 60 matches with five Super 10s to his name.

Thalaivas bought this veteran to support the raiding duo of Ajay and Rahul during do or die raids. He will have to up his performance to book a permanent spot in the playing 7.

Left Corner: Ran Singh

Ran Singh is 1 tackle point away from scoring 200 tackle points.

A defensive all-rounder, Ran Singh made his Pro Kabaddi debut with inaugural champions Jaipur Pink Panthers. After serving four seasons for Jaipur, he was a part of Bengal Warriors for the past two seasons. Ran Singh will now play for Tamil Thalaivas in the season 7.

A prominent defensive all-rounder, Ran Singh has 199 tackle points in 99 matches at an average of 1.89 tackle points per match. He brings a surprise factor when he executes the ankle holds and body blocks.

He has scored 90 raid points in 99 matches. His jump is famous while raiding. Though he doesn't do a lot of raiding, Thalaivas will use him use him as a defender only.

He is a mighty addition to the Tamil Thalaivas squad and will mostly have the best partnership with Mohit Chhillar being on the right corner.

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