Pro Kabaddi League 2019 : Predicted Starting Seven of Gujarat Fortune Giants

Manpreet Singh and his young army will try to cross the final hurdle and win the championship this year Enter caption
Manpreet Singh and his young army will try to cross the final hurdle and win the championship this year Enter caption

Gujarat Fortune Giants have been the most successful team amongst the new entrants who joined the VIVO Pro Kabaddi League in the fifth season. Coached by the legendary Manpreet Singh, the Ahmedabad-based franchise has reached the grand finale of both the seasons they have played.

However, they could not win a single title and finished as runners-up on both occasions. The Fortune Giants have never picked star players in the team and have instead always opted for young talent. Manpreet Singh has transformed many unknown players like Sachin Tanwar, Sunil Kumar, Parvesh Bhainswal and Rohit Gulia into Kabaddi stars.

Also Read - PKL History: 5 players that teams should have never released

Ahead of the seventh edition of the Pro Kabaddi League, the Fortune Giants have made small changes to their team and here's the predicted starting seven of Gujarat Fortune Giants -

Left Corner - Sonu Gahlawat

The left-corner position of the Gujarat Fortune Giants team will be taken by new young player Sonu Gahlawat. Sonu will make his Pro Kabaddi League debut this season. Amongst the options available with the Fortune Giants, this player seems to be the perfect fit for the left corner position.

We have seen in the past how Manpreet Singh has nurtured young talent. So, expect the same to happen this year as well with Sonu Gehlawat.

Sonu was bought at a price of 6 lakhs INR in the auction. The Gujarat Fortune Giants had Sachin Vittala in their left corner last year but they had released him ahead of the auction for PKL 2019.

Sonu Gahlawat is the only left corner option available with the Fortunegiants.

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Left In - Abolfazl Maghsoudlou

Iranian raider, Abolfazl Maghsoudlou is one of the new players that the Gujarat Fortune Giants bought in the player auction. The tall raider had made his Pro Kabaddi debut in season 3 as a part of the U Mumba side. However, he moved to the Patna Pirates side next year and won the title with them. He then had stints with Dabang Delhi KC and U Mumba before Gujarat Fortune Giants picked him this year.

Abolfazl's best performance came in the fifth season of Pro Kabaddi League where he picked 97 points and finished as the league's second best foreign player. The running hand touch is his main weapon to send the opposition defenders out of the mat.

Also Read - PKL Auction 2019: Top 5 bargain buys from the auction

He even has 26 raid points to his name in 'do or die' raids, which will make him the most reliable raider of the Gujarat Fortune Giants side in PKL 7. Maghsoudlou had an underwhelming season last year but he may come out as a top star in PKL 2019 under the eyes of Manpreet Singh.

Left cover - Parvesh Bhainswal

The Gujarat Fortune Giants team management raised a lot of eyebrows when they decided to release Parvesh Bhainswal ahead of season seven. However, they bought the left cover defender back in the auction at a humongous price of 75 lakhs. Parvesh has been one of the vital reasons behind Gujarat's success in the Pro Kabaddi League.

Parvesh Bhainswal has been with the team since season five and has scored 134 points for them. He missed out on a century of points in season six as he finished with a tally of 86 tackle points.

Bhainswal has collected 7 high 5s while donning the Gujarat Fortune Giants jersey. Hence, it did not come as a surprise when Manpreet and co. bought him back in the auction.

The block specialist will try to continue his previous form in the PKL as this year he will have a lot of PKL experience under his belt as well.

Center - Sachin Tanwar

Sachin Tanwar joined Gujarat Fortune Giants as a rookie player in season five but now two seasons later, he is one of the most mature players of the side. In these two seasons, Sachin has played 47 PKL matches for the Fortune Giants and has picked a staggering amount of 349 raid points.

His average of 7.42 raid points/match has made him one of the MVPs of the league. Sachin has played the lead role in the raiding department of the Gujarat Fortune Giants. His 14 Super 10s have helped his franchise win many matches. Tanwar has even made his India debut after impressing for Gujarat Fortune Giants.

Sachin has even contributed well in the defense department with 28 tackle points, which include 3 super tackles as well.

Manpreet Singh will hope that the Rajasthan-born player continues his dominance as a raider and lead Gujarat to their first ever title in season 7.

Right cover - Sunil Kumar (c)

Sunil Kumar was surprisingly handed the captaincy of the Gujarat Fortune Giants last year and the youngster did not disappoint at all as he led his team all the way to the final of season six. Sunil has always played well as a right cover but the captaincy thing has added a new dimension to his career.

With 134 points in 49 matches, Sunil Kumar has been one of the best right covers in the past two Pro Kabaddi seasons. His former franchise, Patna Pirates would be regretting a lot after they let go of him ahead of season five.

The cover combination of Sunil-Parvesh has proven to be unmatchable and thus, one can back this duo to steal the show once again in season seven.

As a captain, Kumar will try to keep his unit motivated enough to cross the final hurdle and bring the trophy to Ahmedabad.

Right In - Rohit Gulia

The Hitman of the Pro Kabaddi League, Rohit Gulia is yet another player who has become a Kabaddi star under the guidance of Manpreet Singh. Gulia was chosen through the Future Kabaddi Heroes Program in season five but it never felt like he was a new young player. The all-rounder always stepped up and delivered the goods when his team needed him the most.

Though his career statistics do not reflect the way he plays on the court, Gulia has proven to be the momentum shifter for the Gujarat Fortune Giants. He has a habit of picking raid points at crucial junctures. With a not-out percentage of 77.88, Rohit makes sure that his team does not suffer an all-out in the match.

Manpreet Singh has bought a bunch of talented players this year but it seems less likely that we may see Rohit Gulia out of the starting seven, at least in the initial games.

Right corner - Ruturaj Koravi

Ruturaj Koravi made his Pro Kabaddi League debut in the previous season and emerged out as one of the better players from the Gujarat side. With zero experience heading into the league, Koravi defied all odds and picked 47 tackle points in the 23 matches he played.

The fearless right corner picked a High 5 and also executed 3 super tackles while donning the Fortune Giants jersey last year. He had an average of 1.91 tackle points/match. But, his not out percentage of 100 made him an asset of the Ahmedabad-based team.

Also Read - Pro Kabaddi 2019 Auction: List of players bought by Gujarat Fortune Giants

Just like Sonu Gehlawat (left corner), Gujarat Fortune Giants only have one good right corner option in Ruturaj Koravi. Thus, if someone suffers an injury mid-season, the Fortune Giants may find themselves short of options in the defense department.

How far do you think will the Gujarat Fortune Giants reach in the seventh edition of the Pro Kabaddi League? Let us know in the comments box below.

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Edited by Zaid Khan
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