Deepak Narwal is a name that requires no introduction to fans of the Pro Kabaddi League. He began his career at the Patna Pirates, in the league’s second season, moved to Dabang Delhi in the fourth, the Bengal Warriors in the fifth and is finally back home in Patna this year.
Narwal has stood out from the very beginning of his playing days, and has gone on to become an exceptional raider, providing invaluable contributions to ensure victory, on a consistent basis. His debut season saw him score the highest number of raid points for his team, a remarkable feat for a debutant competing at the very highest level of Kabaddi in the country. The third edition of the league brought forth further brilliance, with the Pirates first-ever league victory being in no small part attributed to his heroic raids and ability to raise the level of the other raiders as well. Patna’s players and fans are unanimously relieved to have him back on the team.
His dramatic evolution into one of the finest raiders in the league is down to the immense effort he has put into uplifting his individual contributions to raids. While the prowess of his athletic qualities, flexibility and agility, were always lauded, there were questions regarding his ability to achieve more than 10 points in a game. The initial days of his career saw him manage only one super10 in 30 games. He remedied this in Season 5, recording a career high of 4 Super 10’s.
One of his noteworthy traits is a preference for the running hand touch, a move that requires speed and guile, both of which are possessed by him in large quantities.
The picture above depicts this scenario: Relying solely on the element of surprise coupled with varying intensity of acceleration, Narwal rushes towards the opposition defenders while stretching his body, for a brief touch with his hand, and finishes with the tricky escape towards safety.
Despite not holding his focus entirely, Deepak Narwal has been a consistent performer who continues to refine and tweak his style game by game. His confidence and self-belief has led him to be chosen for several do-or-die raids this season, even being substituted in game specifically for those important raids. His 40% raid strike rate is an all time high in the Pro Kabaddi League.
He is also known for his ability to score a lot of bonus points, a skill that is unfortunately underestimated. In the games against UP Yoddhas and Tamil Thalaivas, his streak of bonus points added to his regular raid points, made the difference. The simplicity of his approach; identifying the weak links of the opposition, striving to exploit the chinks in their armor, aiming for poorly defended corners of space, is his brilliance. A tactic that usually can be the difference between victory and defeat, he is a true asset to the Patna Pirates. With a total of 263 raid points and 8 Super10’s in 60 matches, the statistics paint him out to be a decently rated player.
He is a true sportsman encapsulating the ideals of teamwork, which is evident considering the partnership formed with fellow raiders Pardeep Narwal and Manjeet.
The Patna Pirates are currently second in Zone B, possibly due to the complementary skill-sets on their roster. We invite you to continue supporting the serial champions Patna, and watch out for Deepak “Mr. Dependable” Narwal!