Puneri Paltan is the team to beat this Pro Kabaddi season: U Mumba coach Bhaskaran Edachery

We’re one week away from the Star Sports Pro Kabaddi (PKL) season 4 and there has been a lot said about the condition of each them. Every single PKL team out there has lost a host of crucial players to their rivals. The uncertainty around results that was omnipresent in the first season could well reveal itself again this time around. Unarguably, the most consistent team across the three seasons, U Mumba lost thirteen players in the auction that took place around a month back.

But in Rishank Devadiga, Anup Kumar, Jeeva and Rakesh Kumar, Coach Bhaskaran has managed to regroup the nucleus of his stellar line up which will bode well for them. Their Fort Knox-like defence, though, seems to have disappeared and only time will tell if they have a good enough squad to remain competitive throughout season 4.

When asked about the possible favourites this season, Coach Bhaskaran Edachery said, “I think Pune have made some good selections. The two players that they have retained are both really effective (Manjeet Chhillar and Deepak Niwas Hooda). They’re good raiders as well as defenders. They already have good cover positions and now their corner positons look good too.”

He continued, “I think they have 3-4 extra raiders including Nitin Tomar. So they’re a very balanced sided. But it all depends on how they perform on the mat and you can’t say anything now. We’ll have to look how they control the game. If you look at individual players, they’re a very good side. But at the same time we can’t slot any team as a top side or bottom side. They’re all good.”

Veteran U Mumba defender, Jeeva Kumar echoed his coach’s opinion about their state rivals, “I think all the teams are tough but I think Puneri Paltan look like a good team. You obviously can’t say now who will win. Pune have all their player positions corrected and they have extra raiders too. Apart from their main seven, they also have a couple of players on the bench who can get into the first team.”

The fourth season of Pro Kabaddi begins on 25^th June in Pune. Stay tuned to Sportskeeda for the latest updates.