Pro Kabaddi League 2017 Season 5: Five reasons why Telugu Titans can win the title

The fifth season of the Pro Kabaddi League is all set to get underway on 28th July and it will feature four new teams - UP Yoddhas, Haryana Steelers, Fortune Giants Gujarat and Tamil Thalaivas - coming into the fold.

Thus, in total, the league will witness 12 teams from 11 states taking the battle across to one-another on the mat in order to claim the all important title post a span of 90 days, with the final scheduled to take place on the 28th of October.

One team in question is the Telugu Titans owned by Veera Sports, who have had a pretty good run over the course of the past four editions but have not managed to lay their hands on the trophy yet.

In the inaugural season, the team finished fifth on the points table but did not lose heart and made a strong comeback in the second edition, to secure a third-place finish in the league.

The third season saw another slump in their form, wherein they slid down to the fifth place yet again, managing to claim only 7 wins from 14 matches. In the fourth edition, they swam against the tide to make it to the playoffs but were, unfortunately, unable to make it to the finals. Despite that, they were second in the points tally post the league matches with 50 points from their 14 matches.

With the fifth season on the brink of its commencement, the Telugu Titans, with a renewed squad, will look to pose a real challenge for the other teams and aim to cross the final hurdle to clinch the coveted crown. Sportskeeda lists down the five reasons which make the Titans ideal candidates for a top place finish.

#1 Rahul Chaudhari's rampant raiding

The team retained the services of their star raider prior to the player auctions held in May and well, it was probably their most valuable decision. The 'poster boy of kabaddi' as he is referred to, Rahul is the highest point scorer in the history of the league has amassed over 500 points in the course of four seasons, which include 482 raid points from 57 matches.

Moreover, he was also a part of the Indian squad that clinched the Kabaddi World Cup last year, wherein they defeated Iran in the final. He will also lead the side in the fifth season and look to marshal his troops on the mat and more or less lead by example since that will ensure that he is at the top of his attacking game.

#2 Presence of Rakesh Kumar

Rakesh played for the Patna Pirates and U Mumba in the previous editions.

The 34-year old player is one of the most experienced forces on the kabaddi mat with a plethora of skills, talent and tactics his sleeve. The all-rounder will be a live-wire on the mat with the threatening combination of his able defensive skills as well as his attacking charge as per the situations, as is evident from his numbers; 179 raid points and 58 tackle points from 45 matches.

He will more or less play the role of a vice captain for the side and will guide the younger forces on the mat. In fact, Rahul Chaudhari himself echoed this in an earlier interview, when he had said that, "One player I look forward to playing alongside is Rakesh Kumar. I have the golden opportunity to learn from him, take a leaf out of his vast experience in the sport. I’m especially looking forward to my raids since I’m sure that each time I go to the rival shore he will have some important advice and instructions to give me, which will again work to my advantage."

#3 Bargain deal from the auctions

Rohit has had a good record in the PKL in the capacity of a defender.

One of them was the brute defender with the jaw guard, Rohit Rana, who used to ply his trade for the Jaipur Pink Panthers. He was bought in order to make an impregnable defensive wall for the rival raiders. With the quality of his pushes, body blocks and holds, Rohit surely is a major force to reckon with for the opposition, given his 74 defence points in 42 matches.

Another good buy from the auctions was that of young gun Nilesh Salunkhe. Having played his last season with the Titans, the team's think tank looked to reprise the successful raiding combination of Rahul and Nilesh. The duo will lead the attacking charge for the team and thus ensure that the scoreboard keeps ticking in their favour, with Nilesh looking to increase his tally of 71 raid points in 22 matches.

#4 Coach, Naveen Kumar

Naveen Kumar won the World Cup with the Indian team in 2007. Image credits: Sports Star

The young 34-year old coach was a great performer in his playing days and was a part of the gold medal-winning Indian team in the 2006 Asiad and the 2007 World Cup in the capacity of a raider. Other than that, in terms of coaching, he has been the gaffer of the Service team for a good period of time and under his aegis, the team claimed the Senior Nationals.

Naveen seemed confident about his team's chances, as he was quoted as saying to The Hindu in an earlier interview, “We are confident of reaching the final in the coming edition as we have the players capable of coming up good on the day it matters.”

#5 Fear of missing out

Rakesh Kumar and Rahul Chaudhari post a training session. Image credits: Telugu Titans Facebook Page

The Telugu Titans have had some of the best players in their ranks over the course of the last four seasons which includes Rahul Chaudhari, Sukesh Hegde, Deepak Hooda and Dharmaraj Cheralathan amongst the others, but owing to some reason or the other, they have yet not managed to claim the title.

This time around, with the revamped squad in place along with an experienced coaching staff, the team will definitely look to cross the final hurdle and lay their hands on the trophy that has eluded them for a long time.