Former champs Bengal Warriorz seek return to PKL Season-12 playoffs

After four consecutive editions of league stage exits, former Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) champions Bengal Warriorz will aim to make it to the playoffs in the upcoming Season 12, starting August 29. Ahead of the season, the Warriorz parted ways with head coach Prashant Surve after finishing 10th last year with just five wins in 22 matches.

The Warriors reposed their faith in former India international and gold medal-winning coach Naveen Kumar, who led Telugu Titans as head coach in Season 5, as their new head coach, with Praveen Malik as assistant coach for the upcoming season.

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The Warriorz were busy at the PKL Season 12 player auction as they revamped their squad following a few underwhelming campaigns. A closer look at the team’s strengths and weaknesses also reveals the opportunities that the side will want to cash on with a hope to make it to the playoffs.

Strengths

The biggest strength of the Warriorz is likely to be their raiding unit in PKL 12. They bolstered their attack by roping in season 11’s standout raider Devank Dalal for a whopping Rs 2.205 crore at the auction.

Iranian raider Omid Khojasteh Mohammadshah, along with Indian raiders Sushil Kambrekar, Vishwas S, Manprit, Punit Kumar, and Rachit Kumar, will be among the key options in the Warriorz’ attack as they look to make their mark in the upcoming season.

The Warriorz have also brought back Korean star raider Jang Kun Lee, the Scorpion Kick King, and acquired Himanshu at the auction to further bolster their raiding unit.

Weaknesses

The inexperienced defenders could potentially hurt the Warriorz in Season 12. While the Warriorz exercised their Final Bid Match (FBM) options at the auction to retain their star defenders, Nitesh Kumar and Mayur Jagannath Kadam for one season each, the PKL Season 7 winners seem to have an inexperienced defensive unit on paper.

Additionally, the Warriorz are also short of all-rounders in their season 12 squad. Shivansh Thakur and the debutant Moolchandra Singh are the two all-rounders in the squad on paper for the forthcoming campaign.

Opportunities

After a breakthrough season, Devank will aim to continue his dominance on the mat in the Pro Kabaddi. The young raider earlier took the league by storm as he accumulated 301 raid points in 25 matches in Season 11. Alongside him is Sushil Kambrekar, who showed immense potential last season but had to leave mid-season due to an injury. He’ll be looking to redeem himself this time around.

The likes of Yash Malik (left corner), Manjeet (left cover), Deep Kumar (right cover), Amandeep (right corner), Ankit, Sandeep (right corner), Harander (right corner), Parteek (left cover) and Ashish (left corner) are some of the skilful defenders who will work alongside the experienced duo of Nitesh Kumar and Mayur Kadam.

Threats

Considering the balance of the squad, the Warriorz could be heavily reliant on the likes of Devank, which might pose a challenge for the franchise. Moreover, if Devank becomes unavailable for any unforeseen reason, it could significantly impact the Warriorz’ chances of making the playoffs in season 12.