Kabaddi is a contact team sport played between two teams of seven players, originating in ancient India. The objective of the game is for a single player on offense, referred to as a "raider", to run into the opposing team's half of the court, touch out as many of their players as possible, and return to their own half of the court, all without being tackled by the defenders in 30 seconds. Points are scored for each player tagged by the raider, while the opposing team earns a point for stopping the raider. Players are taken out of the game if they are touched or tackled, but return to the game after each point scored by their team from a tag or tackle.
Pro Kabaddi League or abbreviated to PKL is an Indian men's professional Kabaddi league. It was launched in 2014 and is broadcast on Star Sports. It is the most popular kabaddi league in the world. It is also the second most watched sports league in India after the Indian Premier League (IPL). Puneri Paltan are the current champions of PKL.
Anup Kumar is an Indian former professional Kabaddi player and Kabaddi Coach of PKL Team Puneri Paltan. He was a member of the India national kabaddi team that won Asian gold medals in 2010 and 2014, one South Asian gold medal in 2016 and the 2016 Kabaddi World Cup. He was the captain of the Indian National Kabaddi Team. He spent five years with U Mumba and later moved to Jaipur Pink Panthers. In 2012, the Government of India conferred the Arjuna Award on him for his achievements in the sport. He is employed as a Deputy Commissioner of Police in his native State of Haryana. On 19 December 2018, he announced his retirement from kabbadi.
Ajay Thakur is an Indian professional Kabaddi player and the former captain of the Indian National Kabaddi Team.He is widely regarded as one of the Greatest Players Of All Time.He was part of the national teams which won 2016 Kabaddi World Cup and gold medal at 2014 Asian Games. He was awarded the Padma Shri and Arjuna Award in 2019.
Deepak Ram Niwas Hooda is an Indian professional Kabaddi player and the former captain of India national kabaddi team. He was part of the Indian team which won gold medal at the 2016 South Asian Games. He has also featured in all the seasons of the Pro Kabaddi League. Deepak is regarded as one of the best all rounder in the Pro Kabaddi League history.
Pardeep Narwal is an Indian international kabaddi player who currently plays for the Bengaluru Bulls in the Pro Kabaddi League and also the Indian national team. Widely regarded as the greatest raider in kabaddi history, he led the Patna Pirates to three straight titles and holds a multitude of the league's raiding records.
Manjeet Chhillar is an Indian former professional kabaddi player who currently serves as the assistant coach of the Telugu Titans. During his professional career, he played for the Indian national team and won a gold medal at the 2014 Asian Games and 2014 Asian Indoor Games in Incheon. He also played for teams in the Pro Kabaddi League including the Bengaluru Bulls, Puneri Paltan, Jaipur Pink Panthers, Tamil Thalaivas, and Dabang Delhi. The Government of India conferred the Arjuna Award on him for his achievements in sports. In an exclusive chat with NNIS Sports, Chhillar termed it a 'dream' to receive the prestigious award. He was also a member of the state team of Haryana and is on top of Pro Kabaddi’s all-time leaderboards for tackle points (391), successful tackles (374) and High 5s (25).
Fazel Atrachali is an Iranian kabaddi player who currently plays for Bengal Warriors (kabaddi) in the VIVO Pro Kabaddi League and the Iran National kabaddi team.
Surjeet Singh Narwal is an Indian kabaddi player. He was a member of the kabaddi team who won a gold medal in the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.He was a former captain of the team Puneri Paltan. He was also a part of Telugu Titans in Pro Kabaddi season 9. He was currently the captain of Bengaluru Bulls in Pro Kabaddi season 10.
Sachin Tanwar is an Indian kabaddi player who plays for the Patna Pirates till 2023-24 and then goes to [Tamil thalavias] present 2024- in the Pro Kabaddi League and the Indian national team. He was among the top 10 raid point scorers in the league in his first two seasons. He made his debut for the Indian kabaddi team in 2017. He was part of the Indian team that won the gold at the 2022 Asian Games kabaddi competitions. India beat Iran 33-29 in a controversial final.
Hadi Tajik is an Iranian professional kabaddi player represents Iran in international matches and also currently plays for Puneri Paltan in the Indian Pro Kabaddi League.
Naveen Kumar Goyat is an Indian professional kabaddi player who plays for the Indian national kabaddi team and Dabang Delhi KC in the Pro Kabaddi League. His speedy raiding and consistency makes him one of the best raiders in the league. He was part of the Indian Kabaddi team that won the gold medal at the 2022 Asian Games. India defeated Iran 33-29 in a controversial final.
Parvesh Bhainswal is an Indian professional Kabaddi player who plays as a defender. He is selected for the Indian team for the 2022 Asian Games at Hangzhou, China. He is part of the Indian team that won the gold medal in the 2022 Asian Games. India defeated Iran 33-29 in a controversial final after the final was delayed by over 45 minutes.
Arjun Deshwal is an Indian professional Kabaddi player who plays as a raider in the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) for Jaipur Pink Panthers. He is known as a "Raid Machine" in the league for his aggressive raiding technique. He was part of the Indian team that won the gold medal at the 2022 Asian Games in Gangzhou, China.
Aslam Inamdar is an Indian professional Kabaddi player who plays in the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL). He began his career playing in the sub-junior nationals in Maharashtra, then joined Puneri Paltan as a raider for the 2022 PKL season. In 2023, he competed for India at the 2022 Asian Games; the team won gold, controversially defeating Iran 33–29 in the finals. Inamdar continues to play for Jai Bajrang, a club that helped him to have stints with Union Bank and Air India.
Sunil Kumar is an Indian kabaddi player who plays in the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) for the U Mumba franchise as a defender. After winning the Junior Nationals in 2015 and 2016, he was picked up by Patna Pirates for the PKL season 4. He later transferred to Jaipur Pink Panthers. In 2023, Kumar competed for India at the 2022 Asian Games; where the Indian team won gold, controversially defeating Iran 33–29 in the finals.
Nitin Rawal is an Indian kabaddi player from Haryana who plays in the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) as an all rounder. In 2023, he was part of the Indian team at the 2022 Asian Games; that won gold, controversially defeating Iran 33–29 in the finals.
The 2023–2024 Pro Kabaddi League was the tenth season of the Pro Kabaddi League, a franchise based kabaddi league in India. Jaipur Pink Panthers were the defending champions.
Mohammad Reza Shadloui Chianeh is an Iranian kabaddi player who plays as an allrounder in the positions of defense and offense for Iran in international matches and for Haryana Steelers in the Indian Pro Kabaddi League. He rose to prominence as a reliable defender, especially in the Pro Kabaddi League, within a few seasons, as he racked up as many as 177 tackle points from just 45 matches in the PKL.
The 2024 Pro Kabaddi League will be the eleventh season of the Pro Kabaddi League, a franchise-based Kabaddi league in India. The season will begin on 18 October 2024.
