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The first half of the second season of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi is almost over and there have been plenty of players who had shone out. Anup Kumar of U Mumba, Manjeet Chhillar for Bengaluru Bulls, Rohit Kumar Chaudhary for Dabang Delhi among others. These players have become fan favourites and have enthralled the audience with their spectacular raids and tackles.However, there have been quite a few players who have gone about their job behind the spotlight and done it brilliantly. These players are the unsung heroes of the team and the league.Here are the 5 most underrated players in Star Sports Pro Kabaddi:
#5 Jang Kun Lee
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The 22-year-old from South Korea has become a crowd favourite for his attacking forays with Bengal Warriors. With 17 appearances, Jang Kun Lee is the most featured foreigner in the franchise-based league. He has scored a total of 85 points – 82 raid and 3 tackle.
The South Korean has scored 28 points so far in the 6 matches Warriors have played so far. With 12 points against Telugu Titans, Lee was the only player from the Warriors who put up a fight in the 32-30 loss. Lee has been a revelation for the Warriors and ably supported Dinesh Kumar and Nilesh Shinde this season.
#4 Joginder Narwal
The defender, who was signed at the start of this season, has made an immediate impact in Star Sports Pro Kabaddi. He has a tackle success rate of 57%, having gone in for 30 tackles. The 33-year-old has been active in the sport for over 15 years and been one of the most consistent players in the league.
He has been a rock in the left corner position for Bengaluru Bulls and is famous for his ankle hold. In the loss to Jaipur Pink Panthers, Joginder showed his strength and returned with 3 points in his team’s loss.
#3 Sukesh Hegde
The 24-year-old from Telugu Titans has played for the Titans in every single match since the inception of the league and silently gone about with his job. Sukesh Hegde makes the best use of his tall frame and has gathered 113 points in the 21 matches he has played for the Titans so far. Moreover, he has always been disciplined, not receiving a single card in his career.
This season, he took time to settle in, returning with just 3 points from his first 3 matches, but coach J Udaya Kumar persisted with the youngster and he was duly rewarded. Hegde scored 7 points in a losing cause against U Mumba, while scoring 7 and 9 against Jaipur Pink Panthers and Patna Pirates.
#2 Sandeep
This 18-year-old is the second youngest player in the league and has featured in all the 7 matches that the Titans have played this season. Brought in at the start of the second season, Sandeep has been amongst the points on a consistent basis. He has, so far, scored 26 tackle points, out of which he was involved in 2 super tackles.
His mental strength came to the fore against Patna Pirates, when the teenager scored 6 points in front of a vociferous home crowd supporting the Pirates. The defender is one of the vital cogs in this team from Hyderabad and a major reason why they lie in second spot in the table.
#1 Ravinder Pahal
The 24-year-old defender captains Dabang Delhi in the second season of Pro Kabaddi. Ravinder Pahal has overturned the season for the Dabangs ever since he was reinstated as the captain of the side. Despite having an average first season, Ravinder has been in dazzling form for the Dabangs this season. In the first match, when he was not the captain, he scored 7 points in a loss against Telugu Titans which included 3 from a super tackle. Another loss ensued for the Dabangs and in the next match Ravinder was named as the captain.
The captaincy came as a boon for the defender as he led the team to their first win of the tournament scoring 7 points against Bengal Warriors. His performance against Jaipur Pink Panthers was, arguably, the best defensive display by an individual this season. With 30 points, he has the most points this season. He has been absolutely sensational whenever he has taken the field, doing his job behind the scenes as Kashiling Adake and Rohit Kumar Chaudhary have taken the spotlight.
