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Patna Pirates aim for Strong Raiding Partnerships to Complement Young Defence
Three-time vivo Pro Kabaddi champions Patna Pirates came into the vivo Pro Kabaddi Season 8 player auction with a lot of eyes on their new team combination. The team needed a new strike raider as well as an experienced Corner combination.
They managed to make some big purchases to strengthen both departments and will come into Season 8 with an all-new look. On paper, the raiding department looks potent. Fans will be looking forward to seeing their multi-prong attack on the mat. The defence has several new names and it will be interesting to see how the youngsters combine to keep opposition raiders at bay.
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Balance Among Retained Players
Panta Pirates chose to keep a balance among their raiding and defensive strength among their retentions. Right Cover Neeraj Kumar, who was the team’s most successful defender in Season 7, was among the Elite Retained players. He had also scored a record-equalling 11 tackle points in a single match for the team last season. Among the raiders, Patna Pirates chose to retain Monu. Monu has been used as a Do-or-Die specialist by the team and currently sits on 143 points from 54 matches.
Mohit, Sahil Mann, and Rajveersinh Pratap Rao Chavan featured among the existing young players. The trio is yet to play a single match for Patna Pirates but will be hopeful of putting in a good performance when the time comes to justify the team’s faith in their abilities.
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Strong Raiders at the Forefront
Patna Pirates have been known for their raiding prowess in vivo Pro Kabaddi and, in season 8, they chose to stay faithful to that identity. The team went with 8 raiders out of their 16-member squad. Their two biggest purchases at the auction were also raiders in Sachin Tanwar and Prashanth Kumar Rai.
The team now boasts of four world-class raiders as vivo Pro Kabaddi’s highest-scoring overseas raider Jang Kun Lee and Monu Goyat also join the mix, with Patna Pirates using their Final Bid Match card to pick up the former. Lee has been with the Patna Pirates since Season 7, where he scored 63 points for them, and Goyat has been a key member of the Season 5 championship-winning Patna Pirates team.
Iranian Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh was also snapped up by Patna Pirates to boost their overall strength. In the process, he became the most expensive overseas player at the auction at a price tag of INR 31 Lakh.
Young Defence has a Lot to Prove
Patna Pirates chose to go with a new-look defence and Right Corner Sunil is the only established name in that department for the team. Puneri Paltan’s former Right Corner Shubham Shinde will also be seen joining Sunil along with Left Corner Sandeep and Sourav Gulia.
The defensive set-up is made up of some promising youngsters and they will be keen to get on the mat and showcase their skills. However, it will be up to seniors like Sunil and Neeraj Kumar to shore up the defence and ensure the aggression of the youngsters is channelled well.
vivo Pro Kabaddi Season 8 starts 22 December, 2021. Catch all the LIVE action on the Star Sports Network and on Disney+Hotstar and follow Pro Kabaddi on Instagram, Facebook & Twitter for all the latest updates!
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