PKL 2024: Fazel Atrachali named Bengal Warriorz captain ahead of Pro Kabaddi League season 11

The 11th season of the Pro Kabaddi League is all set to commence from October 18, in Hyderabad. Ahead of the season, Bengal Warriorz has named the talismanic Iranian Fazel Atrachali as the team’s captain, and Nitesh Kumar as his deputy.

The Warriorz turned over the page at the Season 11 PKL Player Auction where it was able to piece together a strong and well-balanced squad. It roped in its captain Fazel Atrachali, enabling him to pair up with Maninder Singh.

Fazel Atrachali said, “It is a great honour to be a part of the Bengal Warriorz set-up, which is one of the oldest teams in the PKL. This is a great opportunity for me to work with one of the top raiders in the game – Maninder Singh.

One of the most recognisable faces in the PKL, Fazel, has been part of the tournament since the second season and he is all set to make his first appearance for the Bengal Warriorz, one of the founding teams of the competition.

He has played a total of 169 games in the tournament, with a whopping 494 points to his name. He has a not-out percentage of 90 and a 54% tackle success rate to his name. The towering defender also belongs to an elite club of defenders who have won the ‘Defender of the Tournament’ on more than one occasion.

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Fazel has won two Asian Games Silver medals (2010 and 2014) and the Asian Games Gold medal in 2018, apart from winning the PKL title twice and leading the Gujarat Giants to the final of the competition in its debut season.

Meanwhile, vice-captain Nitesh Kumar is also very experienced and has been part of the PKL since Season 5. The defender will look to build on the 354 points from 129 games in his PKL career. He is well remembered for his fantastic campaign in Season 6 when he became the first player in league history to score 100 tackle points in a single campaign.

“Fazel Atrachali is one of the best defenders in the sport of Kabaddi, and in the PKL. His ability to lead by example is very well documented. As a coach, it is great to be able to work with Fazel, Maninder and Nitesh, as they are very experienced and are proven performers for many years,” said Prashant Surve, Bengal Warriorz head coach.