From idolising Ravinder Pahal to becoming the top-scoring Indian defender in PKL 10, Krishan has come a long way

Highly talented defender, Krishan has gotten sharper and grown in stature over the years in the Pro Kabaddi League. He enjoyed a remarkable campaign in the last PKL season with Patna Pirates after joining them following two seasons with Dabang Delhi K.C.. With 78 tackle points in PKL 10, Krishan was the second-best defender in the milestone season.

Born on October 20, Krishan was raised in Pai village in Haryana’s Kaithal district and grew up watching his elder brother playing circle-style kabaddi with other youngsters from his village who were involved in the sport.

He, in particular, got inspired after watching them play in his village as well as seeing the high-octane action on offer in Pro Kabaddi League. In PKL, Ravinder Pahal was Krishan's role model.

Putting in the hard yards to succeed

Determined to succeed in the sport, he put in the hard yards to be successful by rising up for training as early as 5 AM to improve his fitness and skills. Krishan worked a lot on the basics of defence, especially the ankle hold.

In the early stages of his career, he learned a lot by watching Pro Kabaddi videos and rectifying his mistakes after consultation with his coach. His dreams of making a career as a player in the sport got its first break when he was roped in by the NK Kabaddi Academy for the K7 kabaddi tournament.

After being picked for the tournament, he started his preparations four to six weeks before its commencement and trained twice a day to give himself the best possible chance of success. Krishan’s hard work paid off as he grabbed the PKL franchises’ eyeballs after some fantastic performance in the K7 kabaddi tournament.

PKL breakthrough

Soon after, when Dabang Delhi K.C.’s then head coach, Krishan Hooda was looking to sign new domestic players for PKL Season 8, the determined Krishan caught Hooda’s eye and was picked by the team through the New Young Programme (NYP).

Krishan looked effective and promising for Dabang Delhi K.C. at the right corner position but he wasn’t ready to be a first choice player for the team yet. Dabang’s head coach Hooda agreed that Krishan didn't get too many chances in his debut PKL season but the defender still managed to secure 27 tackle points and became champions in Season 8 with Dabang Delhi K.C..

In his second PKL season, Krishan was more involved with the team. Even though Dabang Delhi K.C. failed to retain their title in Season 9, Krishan enjoyed plenty of time on the mat as he scored 34 tackle points for them in 21 appearances.

Establishing himself as a top defender with the Pirates

However, he was released by Dabang Delhi K.C. ahead of Season 10 and it would turn out to be a blessing in disguise as his best PKL performances would soon follow. Krishan was picked by Patna Pirates for Pro Kabaddi Season 10 for INR 17.20 lakh and the three-time champions were vindicated in their purchase of him as he turned out to be the second-best defender in the league and the best from his side with 78 tackle points.

For taking his game to the next level in Season 10, Krishan gave complete credit to Patna Pirates’ head coach, Narender Redhu who advised the defender to make a few changes to his overall game during practice. He, in particular, bettered his skills like the ankle hold and double thigh hold under the guidance of Redhu.

PKL Season 10 saw him being very nimble on his feet on the mat when it came to judging the raider’s movement. The freedom that he had representing three-time champions, Patna Pirates helped his game excel in a fearless manner throughout the season as he finished as the highest-scoring Indian defender in PKL 10 with 78 tackle points, including five Super Tackles and six High 5s.

Now an established defensive powerhouse in PKL, Krishan is likely to go from strength to strength as he continues to emulate his idol Ravinder Pahal. Krishan, in fact, bettered his performance in PKL Season 10 in such a manner that he ended up scoring more tackle points in the recently concluded campaign than what he had in his first two PKL seasons combined. Looking ahead, Krishan is only likely to get better with time, so don’t be very surprised if he transforms into India’s best defender in the years to come.

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