Telugu Titans have been the strongest raiding team in the Pro Kabaddi League (having scored the most raid points). They have retained Rahul Chaudhari, the highest raid point scorer in PKL history with 482 raid points, and brought back Nilesh Salunke, the breakout star of PKL 4.
Additionally, the inclusion of the experienced Rakesh Kumar, Iran’s World Cup star Mohsen Maghsoudlou and promising youngsters like Vinoth Kumar and Athul MS means the Titans once again boast a very strong raiding department.
They look like they’re making an effort to right their wrongs of previous campaigns which were characterised by scintillating raiding performances and shambolic defensive efforts. They have recruited quality defenders in the form of Vinod Kumar, Rohit Rana, Farhad Milaghardan and the experienced Rakesh Kumar to make them a well-rounded team.
They have been inconsistent in PKL though, having finished in the fifth position twice and making the playoffs twice. They will be looking to make the PKL play-offs in consecutive seasons for the first time.
The team will play their home matches at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium in Hyderabad. The fifth season begins on 28 July.
Captain: Rahul Chaudhari
The star raider of Telugu Titans has the most raid points (482) in PKL history. The fact that he is 102 raid points clear of the next best raider (Kashiling Adake) shows just how dominant he has been.
He scored 146 raid points in PKL 4 to win the best raider award. His average raid points of 8.46 is the best by any player in PKL. The poster boy of PKL has 24 super 10s in the PKL which is also the most by any player illustrating his destructive impact.
Squad Profile
Transfers
Strength – Raiding
The raiding department will be led by PKL’s highest scorer (482 raid points) and arguably its best raider, Rahul Chaudhari. Others include break-out star Nilesh Salunke, experienced Rakesh Kumar, Iran's star Mohsen Maghsoudlou and youngsters like Vinoth Kumar and Athul MS.
Weakness – Corners
Rakesh Kumar and Amit Singh Chhillar are likely to be their corner combination. While Rakesh is experienced, he struggled to form a decent partnership with his fellow defenders and managed just 26 tackle points in PKL 4.
His opposite corner, Amit Singh Chhillar, has also failed to make an impact in the PKL so far. Since PKL 1, he is yet to play a whole season for any team and has managed just 30 tackle points in the last three seasons.
Opportunity – Talented Youngsters
Promising young raiders Vinoth Kumar and Athul MS have shown glimpses of their potential in the past seasons. The young all-rounder Vishal Bharadwaj who impressed in his two PKL season 4 outings – scoring 6 tackle points also has a chance to build on his promise.
PKL 5 will see teams playing 22 matches and we can expect these youngsters to grab the chances coming their way
Threat – Lack of Alternatives
Telugu Titans have gone in with just 5 defenders plus Rakesh Kumar. With the tournament due to run for three months and if their first choice defence team, struggles to gel or they suffer injuries (Rohit Rana, Vinod Kumar all suffered an injury-interrupted PKL 4 campaign), the Titans do not have experienced back-ups to replace them.
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