New Delhi, Oct 14 After three consecutive seasons of league-stage exits, former champions of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL), U Mumba will be eager to reclaim their lost glory in Season 11. The Mumbai team won the PKL title in Season 2 but have failed to lift the coveted trophy since. Season 11 will see U Mumba continue with Iranian Gholamreza Mazandarani as their head coach. An experienced coach who has tasted success, Mazandarani has led the Iranian kabaddi team to gold at the 2018 Asian Games and previously coached U Mumba in Seasons 6 and 10.
U Mumba were busy at the Season 11 Player Auction, looking to revamp their squad following successive underwhelming campaigns. They invested in both defence and attack to strengthen the attack and defense for the upcoming season. The Mumboys' defence will undoubtedly be one of their biggest strengths in Season 11 of PKL. Sunil Kumar, eighth on the leaderboard for most tackle points (336) in PKL history, will lead their defence after U Mumba spent an impressive INR 1.015 crore on him at the Player Auction.
U Mumba’s defence is packed with proven talents who have showcased their defensive prowess in the past. In addition to Sunil Kumar, the defence boasts players like Parvesh Bhainswal, Rinku, Gokulakannan M, Bittu, and Sombir, highlighting their defensive depth.
While Parvesh Bhainswal is 11th on the all-time chart for most tackle points (310), Rinku could also be a key player in the team's defence. He has accumulated 147 tackle points in his PKL career and will be crucial to U Mumba's defensive strategies. Bittu and Sombir further strengthen the team's defensive options.
In terms of weaknesses, U Mumba’s attack is likely to be scrutinised. After losing Guman Singh, their main raider for the past two seasons, at the Player Auction, U Mumba will be heavily reliant on the duo of all-rounder Amirmohammad Zafardanesh and Manjeet to handle the bulk of the raiding duties.
Season 10 saw Zafardanesh finishing as U Mumba’s second-highest raid points scorer (141) in what was his debut campaign. The Season 2 champions will be hoping the Iranian can build on that performance in the upcoming season, with support from Manjeet, who is expected to be U Mumba’s new lead raider.
With 633 raid points to his name, Manjeet has ample experience to take on the mantle of being the team's main raider. However, whether he can rise to the challenge is a question that remains to be answered.
One particular threat U Mumba will be wary of heading into the new season is the overall inexperience of their squad. As many as 10 U Mumba players are yet to make their debut in the PKL, and several others have only played a handful of games and are yet to firmly establish themselves as PKL-calibre talents.
If the team’s main players fail to meet expectations, the head coach may need to rely on the rest of the squad to find solutions. However, whether these inexperienced players can rise to the occasion is a question that will only be answered once PKL 11 kicks off on October 18.
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