Each & Every Captain of Patna Pirates since Season 1.
3 times champions Patna have had 7 captains in total since the start of PKL. Recently, they announced their star defender Neeraj Kumar as the new captain of the team for Season 9. Patna has won all of its 3 titles under 3 different captains – Manpreet, Dharamraj and Pardeep. They will be looking to do that again with the new captain Neeraj this season. Let’s see all the captains Patna had till now in the Vivo Pro Kabaddi.
#1. Rakesh Kumar – Season 1.
Veteran player and Former coach of Haryana Steelers, Rakesh was the most expensive player of the very first PKL season. He was bought by Patna and also named the captain of the team. He took Patna to the semifinals that season where they lost to the champions of the season Jaipur. Patna had finished 4th in the points table that season. Later on, they managed to beat the bulls in the 3rd place match. Rakesh’s personal performance that season was impressive where he collected a total of 99 points.
#2. Sandeep Narwal – Season 2.
Patna decided to change their captain in the next season. Star All-rounder Sandeep Narwal was announced the team captain for season 2. But they got the same results this season too. The team again got knocked out in the semi-finals but this time by U- Mumba, although they were also the season champions like Jaipur. Just like the previous season, they finished 4th on the points table.
#3. Manpreet Singh – Season 3.
Former Coach of Gujarat Giants and the newly appointed coach of Haryana Steelers, Manpreet Singh is a well-known name in the Pro Kabaddi World. But instead of his playing skills, he got fame from his coaching skills. But that does not mean that he has not had a memorable PKL career as a player. As a player, He played his one and only season as the Captain of Patna Pirates where he lead them to their first title. Manpreet failed to impress us as a player that season but his trust in the young man Pardeep gave Patna their first title and their all-time best raider.
#4. Dharamaraj Cherlathan – Season 4.
Anna was the captain of the most successful PKL franchise in its 4th season. The team took revenge for season 2 from U Mumba in the 3rd season. And this time it was the Jaipur from which Patna took the revenge of season 1. Patna won their back-to-back PKL title by beating Jaipur in the Finals. Pardeep again was the best season raider and played a vital role in the team’s journey. Dharmaraj took 31 tackle points that season, he and Fazel were one of the reasons Patna was able to win their 2nd title.
#5. Pardeep Narwal – Season 5 ,6 & 7.
Patna Rewarded Pardeep with the captaincy of the team after two of his two decent seasons of Raiding. Pardeep performance got boosted after getting the captaincy where he broke almost every raiding record and earned the nickname Record Breaker. Even as a captain, he didn’t disappoint and made Patna champions for the third season in a row. His and Monu’s heroics helped Patna to rule the whole season. Pardeep continued as the captain of the team in the next two seasons where he also continued his rading form but Patna had their two worst seasons where they didn’t even qualify for the knockouts.
#6. Prashant Kumar Rai – Season 8.
After Pardeep’s departure, Patna made the experienced man Rai the captain for the season. Prashant with his experience brought back the old Patna vibes and helped them to qualify for the knockouts after two seasons. Patna were the favourites in the whole season and Pirates fans got the nostalgia. But Delhi managed to beat Patna by 1 point in the nail-biting final. Prashant scored 95 raid points in the season.
#7. Neeraj Kumar – Season 9.
Patna released Prashant in season 9. They haven’t bought any experienced players this season. So they have decided to make their young and promising defender Neeraj the captain this season. Neeraj has been impressive in his tackles over the last 2 seasons. Let’s see what he does in captaincy. However, Patna, later on, signed Sukesh Hegde for the season who has that experience which will help Neeraj in the tough conditions.
These were the 7 captains of Patna Pirates in the league. Tell us in the comment about your favourite one.