Pro Kabaddi League 2018 Auction: Rating all the squads

The Pro Kabaddi League Auction was a very successful event. Monu Goyat was the costliest player as he was sold for Rs. 1.51 crore, will turn out for the Haryana Steelers. Fazel Atrachali was the most expensive foreigner as he was bought for Rs. 1 crore. Rahul Chaudhari, Nitin Tomar were among the most expensive players as well. As many as 6 players were bought for more than 1 crore.

However, the biggest surprise of the auction was Manjeet Chillar's price as he was bought for just 20 Lakh by the Tamil Thalaivas. Surprisingly, the Panthers didn't use the FBM card for him at such a bargain price. Anup Kumar and Kashiling Adake were bought for only 30 Lakh and 32 Lakh surprisingly. U Mumba opted against using the FBM card for them and that was shocking considering, they both came at bargain prices.

That being said, here's the final rating of all 12 squads that will feature in the upcoming edition of the PKL:

UP Yoddha- 4.5/10

Raiders- Rishank Devadiga, Shrikant Jadhav, Sulieman Kabir, Azad Singh, Prashant Kumar Rai, Bhanu Pratap Tomar, Azad Singh

Defenders- Jeeva Kumar, Nitesh Kumar, Pankaj, Sachin Kumar, Nitin Mavi, Amit, Vishav Chowdhary

All-rounders- Seong Ryeol Kim, Sagar Krishna, Arkam Sheikh, Narender

Most raid points- Rishank Devadiga

Most tackle points- Nitesh Kumar

The UP Yoddha had a poor auction and they will be regretting the fact that they let Nitin Tomar into the auction. He was sold for Rs. 1.15 crore and became a bit too costly for their liking. Their team's fortunes will depend on how Rishank and Prashant perform. They need to perform out of their skins and hope that Shrikant can support them.

Their defenders aren't great as they don't have a single defender who was there in the top 15 defenders last season. They don't have a single player who has captained a PKL team so, they will need a new skipper as well.

At the moment UP Yoddha look like a weak team and they will need some miraculous performances to qualify.

U Mumba- 5/10

Raiders- Abolfazl Maghsodlou, Gaurav Kumar, Darshan Kadian, Vinod Kumar, R Sriram, Arjun Deshwal, Siddharth Sirish, Abhishek Singh, Rohit Baliyan

All-rounders- Mohit Balyan, Ananth Kumar, E Subhash, Shiv Om

Defenders- Fazel Atrachali, Hadi Tajik, Surinder Singh, Dharmaraj Cheralathan, Rajguru, Rohit Rana, Adinath Sakaram

Most raid points- Abolfazl Maghsodlou

Most tackle points- Fazel Atrachali

U Mumba didn't have the best of the auctions as they failed to pick up an experienced raider. Their best raider in the squad is Abolfazl and that shows the lack of high-quality raiders. Putting so much pressure on the young Irani raider could backfire on them.

They will need their defense to cover up for the lack of high-quality raiders. They have some top-notch defenders in the form of Atrachali, Cheralathan and Hadi Tajik. They possess one of the most lethal defense in the tournament but that might not be enough to take them into the knockout stage.

Dabang Delhi- 5/10

Raiders- Chandran Ranjit, Shabeer Bapu, Pawan Kumar Kadian, Yogesh Hooda, Kamal Kishore Jat, Khomsan Thomgkhan, Naveen Kumar

All-rounders- Meraj Sheykh, Rajesh Narwal, Siddharth, Vishal, Tapas Pal

Defenders- Satpal, Vishal Mane, Ravinder Pahal, Vishnu Viraj Langde, Tusharam Balaram Bhoir

Most raid points- Meraj Sheykh

Most tackle points- Ravinder Pahal

It looks like Dabang Delhi could endure yet another dismal campaign this season. They don't have any raider who is capable of picking up 8-9 points consistently in every match. The same story goes for the defenders as well. Apart from Ravinder Pahal, none of the other defenders have been in good form during the last couple of seasons.

The team will rely heavily on star all-rounder, Meraj Sheykh. The raiders, Shabeer Bapu, Chandran Ranjit and Pawan Kadian will have to shoulder huge responsibilities. They must deliver consistently and get at least 5-7 points per match.

Rajesh Narwal hasn't been in the best of form and it will be interesting to see how he performs. If he can deliver a good performance in both the departments, the team can perform a bit better than expected.

Bengal Warriors- 5.5/10

Raiders- Maninder Singh, Jang Kun Lee, Mithin Kumar, Mahesh Goud, Amit Kumar, Amit Nagar, Rakesh Narwal, Ashish Chhokar

All rounders- Ran Singh, Shrikant Tewthia, Ravindra Rumesh Kumawat, Vittal Meti, Bhupender Singh

Defenders- Surjeet Singh, Ziuar Rahman, Amaresh Mondal, Baldev Singh, Manoj Dhull, Vijin Thangadurai

Most raid points- Maninder Singh

Most tackle points- Surjeet Singh

Bengal Warriors have managed to keep their core players but couldn't get a lot apart from that. Maninder Singh will lead the raiding department. Jang Kun Lee hasn't been in great form off late and that could be a cause for concern. He is their secondary raider and if his poor form continues, Maninder might have to carry the raiding department all alone as they don't have any other prominent raiders.

The defence looks good with Surjeet Singh and Ran Singh. The additions of Vijin Thangadurai and Ziuar Rahman should help the team's cause. Warriors will be a tough team to beat but their qualification hopes will rely on how the support raiders and defenders perform.

Gujarat Fortunegiants- 6/10

Raiders- Sachin, Mahendra Ganesh Rajput, Ajay Kumar, K Prapanjan, Dong Geon Lee, Shubham Ashok Palkar, Lalit Chaudhary, Dharmendar

All-rounders- Hadi Oshtorak, Anil, Rohit Gulia

Defenders- Sunil Kumar, Parvesh Bhainswal, C Kalai Arasan, Amit, Sachin Vittala, Ruturaj Koravi, Amit Jaivir, Vikram Kandola

Most raid points- Sachin

Most tackle points- Sunil Kumar

Gujarat have built a fairly decent squad. They have a good raiding attack with Sachin to lead to it. He will get good support from Mahendra, Ajay and K Prapanjan. But one problem they face is that all these people are inexperienced so, they could suffer a dip in form at any stage of the tournament.

The defense is pretty good with Sunil Kumar set to lead it. Hadi Oshtorak and Parvesh are also very good in the defense and will play a key role in the team's fortunes. The team does look good but lack of experience could cost them in high-pressure games.

Bengaluru Bulls- 6/10

Raiders- Rohit Kumar, Kashiling Adake, Harish Naik, Rohit, Pavan Kumar Sehrawat, Anil, Anand V, Sumit Singh

All rounders- Jasmer Singh, Dong Ju Hong, Gyung Tae Kim, Mahesh Maruti

Defenders- Mahender Singh, Mahender Dhaka, Ashish Kumar, Amit Sheoran, Raju Lal Choudhary, Nithesh, Jawahar Vivek, Sandeep

Most raid points- Rohit Kumar/Kashiling Adake

Most tackle points- Mahender Singh

Bengaluru Bulls built a potent raiding attack but failed to get a rock-solid defence. A team with Rohit Kumar and Kashiling Adake is always dangerous. You add to that list some impressive youngsters like Pavan Sehrawat and Harish Naik, it is a formidable raiding department.

The defence doesn't have the same quality and it going to rely on Mahender Singh. Discarded player, Jasmer Singh Gulia will have a point to prove. He is a terrific player but he hasn't had a lot of game time in the recent past.

Bulls don't have a lot of experience and a lot will depend on the shoulders of Rohit Kumar and Kashiling.

Haryana Steelers- 6.5/10

Raiders- Monu Goyat, Vikas Kandola, Wazir Singh, Zakir Hussain, Arun Kumar HN, Anand Surendra, Bhuvneshwar Gaur

All-rounders- Patrick Nzua Muvai, Kuldeep Singh, Prateek, Mayur Shivtarkar

Defenders- Surender Nada, Neeraj Kumar, Vikas, Sachin Shingade, Amit Singh

Most raid points- Monu Goyat

Most tackle points- Surender Nada

The Haryana Steelers will bank heavily on 3 players, Monu Goyat, Vikas Kandola and Surender Nada to deliver the goods. The squad doesn't have a lot of depth and they will hope that a couple of players apart from the aforementioned 3 can make an impact. The experienced Wazir Singh will look to impress after a couple of bleak campaigns. He will have to play supporting act to Vikas and Monu.

The defense will rely heavily on Nada. They would want seasoned campaigner, Sachin Shingade to deliver the goods and support Nada as well. The team could falter if the support acts can't perform well or the main players suffer injuries.

Patna Pirates- 6.5/10

Raiders- Pardeep Narwal, Deepak Narwal, Surender Singh Bhola, Tushar Patil, Vikas Jaglan, Manjeet

All-rounders- Jawahar Dagar, Taedeok Eom, Hyunil Park, Kuldeep Singh, Vijay, Arvind Kumar, Parvin Binwal, Kuldeep Singh

Defenders- Jaideep, Manish, Vijay Kumar, Ravinder Kumar, Vikas Kale

Most raid points- Pardeep Narwal

Most tackle points- Jaideep

It is safe to say that Patna Pirates didn't have the auction they would have wanted. They don't have the best supporting raiders for Pardeep, at least statistically. There aren't any known defenders on the team other than Jaideep, who is also very inexperienced. A lot will depend on how Pardeep, Jaideep and Vijay perform.

Vijay was one of their silent point scorers last season. He is a very effective all-rounder and will be key to their fortunes. It remains to be seen if, Deepak Narwal and Surender Singh Bhola can perform well. Patna will want one of them to deliver a performance like Monu Goyat, who was of great help to Pardeep last season.

Patna will hope that Pardeep can deliver the with a truckload of points.

Telugu Titans- 7/10

Raiders- Rahul Chaudhari, Nilesh Salunke, Mohsen Maghsodlou, Rakshit, Ankit Beniwal, Anand, Kamal Singh

All rounders- Mahender Singh, Armaan

Defenders- Vishal Bharadwaj, Sombir, Abozar Mighani, Farhad Milaghardan, C Manoj Kumar, Anuj Kumar, Sanket Chavan, Rakesh Singh Kumar, Deepak

Most raid points- Rahul Chaudhari

Most tackle points- Abozar Mighani/Vishal Bharadwaj

Telugu Titans had a decent outing in the auction as they managed to keep their core intact. They used the FBM card for Rahul Chaudhari and kept him with them for yet another season. They have strengthened their defense with the inclusion of Abozar Mighani. They went on a shopping spree for the Future Star raiders and got a bucket load of them.

They managed to keep Sombir, Vishal Bharadwaj, and Farhad. Rahul Chaudhari will be assisted by Nilesh Salunke and Mohsen. They both were very impressive last season but their stats don't tell the same story as they were underutilized.

The Titans have a fairly decent squad and their only dilemma will be that of how to fit Sombir into the scheme of things. Sombir is a right corner but due to Abozar's arrival he might have to play in a different position.

Puneri Paltan- 7.5/10

Raiders- Rajesh Mondal, Nitin Tomar, Deepak Kumar Dahiya, More GB, Akshay Jadhav, Parvesh

All-rounders- Sandeep Narwal, Amit Kumar, Sanjay Shreshta, Takamitsu Kono, Monu

Defenders- Girish Ernak, Ravi Kumar, Vikash Khatri, Rinku Narwal, Vinod Kumar, Bajrang

Most raid points- Nitin Tomar

Most tackle points- Girish Ernak/Sandeep Narwal

Puneri Paltan might have lost Deepak Hooda to the Pink Panthers but they have gotten back their former player, Nitin Tomar. Paltan has some good raiders like Tomar, Rajesh Mondal, and Deepak Kumar Dahiya. Their raiding department looks formidable and they can rattle any defense.

Their defense is also brilliant with Sandeep Narwal and Girish Ernak. They also have the young and impressive Rinku Narwal along with the experienced Vinod Kumar. They have all bases covered and look like one of the most dangerous teams. Pune will be a force to reckon with and they are most likely to qualify for the knockout stage.

Tamil Thalivas- 8.5/10

Raiders- Ajay Thakur, Surjeet Singh, Jasvir Singh, Sukesh Hegde, Athul MS, Anil Kumar, K Jayaseelan, Abhinandan Chandel, Rajnish

All-rounders- Manjeet Chillar, D Pratap, Vimal Raj, Chan Sik Park

Defenders- Amit Hooda, C Arun, Jae Min Lee, D Gopu, Darshan J, Sunil

Most raid points- Ajay Thakur

Most tackle points- Manjeet Chillar/Amit Hooda

The Tamil Thaliavas seem like one of the most balanced squads after the completion of this year's auction. They have a good mix of youth and experience in their squad. Ajay Thakur will be the team's lead raider while, the likes of Surjeet, Jasvir and Sukesh will play support roles.

Their defense is one of the strongest in the tournament as they have Amit Hooda, Manjeet Chillar, Sunil and C Arun. They guaranteed themselves a spot in the knockouts after the auction itself. The only concern might be the effectiveness of the support raiders. All of them are capable but had lackluster campaigns the last time around.

They will start the tournament as one of the favorites.

Jaipur Pink Panthers- 9/10

Raiders- Anup Kumar, K Selvamani, David Mosambayi, Gangadhari Mallesh, Anand Patil, Lokesh Kaushik, Sunil Siddhgavali, Ajit Singh

All-rounders- Deepak Hooda, Nitin Rawal, Brijendra Singh, N Shiva

Defenders- Santhapanaselvam, Mohit Chillar, Sandeep Dhull, Bajirao Hodage, Young Chang Ko

Most raid points- Deepak Hooda

Most tackle points- Mohit Chillar

Jaipur Pink Panthers look like the strongest team competing in this year's tournament. They have quality raiders like Anup Kumar, Selvamani, and Deepak Hooda. The three of them have been lead raiders in the past and when such raiders join forces, the opposition is in danger of losing.

They also have high-quality defenders like Sandeep Dhull, Mohit Chillar, and Bajirao Hodage. They also have talented all-rounder, Nitin Rawal. He was very agile with his raiding while, his ankle holds were effective as well.

They will start the tournament as heavy favorites due to the all-round strength in their squad. They also have a good mix of youth and experience in their squad.

Edited by Amar Anand