Pro Kabaddi 8: Patna Pirates shocks everyone as Pardeep Narwal not retained; here’s why

Former title winners Patna Pirates made a surprising move ahead of the eighth edition of the Vivo Pro Kabaddi League (PKL). The Patna-based franchise didn’t retain the tournament’s all-time highest-scoring raider and their skipper Pardeep Narwal. He is now set to mark his presence at the PKL 2021 auctions, scheduled from August 29 to August 31. 

Narwal was one of the key driving forces behind Pirates’ hat-trick of Pro Kabaddi title wins between seasons 3 and 5. However, they had failed to qualify even for the playoffs in the last two editions of the tournament. Nonetheless, Pardeep Narwal’s performances weren’t affected as the 24-year-old amassed 233 and 304 points in seasons 6 and 7. The team’s poor performance was a result of their overdependence on ‘Dubki King’ as he went for almost 48 per cent of Patna’s total raids.

Possible reason behind why Pardeep Narwal was released

Pardeep Narwal emerged as the most valuable player of the tournament in PKL 4 and PKL 5. The Indian kabaddi player continued with his majestic run in the consequent seasons as well. Currently, with 1169 total points and 1160 raid points, Narwal’s records are second to none.

Talking about the most likely reason behind why Pardeep Narwal wasn’t released for PKL 8, could be he refused to sign for Patna Pirates. However, he can still be a part of his former franchise if the Pirates opt for the FBM (Final Bid Match) option. It won’t be any surprise if Sonepat’s star kabaddi player goes on to become the most expensive player at the Vivo Pro Kabaddi 8 auction. 

All 12 teams have announced their respective lists of retained players and talking about Patna, they have named five players. These include the likes of Neeraj Kumar (defender), Monu (raider) in the Elite Retained Players (ERP) category and Mohit (raider), Rajveersinh Pratap Rao Chavan (raider), Sahil Mann (all-rounder) in the Existing New Young Players (ENYP) category.

Also Read | Full list of Vivo Pro Kabaddi 2021 retained players – Pawan Kumar Sehrawat, Fazel Atrachali amongst top players