New Delhi, 14 October (H.S.): The player auction for the second season of the Kabaddi Champions League (KCL) will be held on October 17, with more than 300 players expected to go under the hammer. The 10 participating franchises will have a combined budget of Rs 5 crore to build their squads for the upcoming season. More than 6,000 players registered for the centralised selection trials held ahead of the auction.

The centralised selection trials for the upcoming season were conducted in Sonipat and Rohtak, providing kabaddi players with an opportunity to earn selection for the league. During the auction, the franchises will bid for players according to their team requirements and tactical plans.

Several prominent players, including Asian Games gold medallists and members of the Indian national team, are expected to feature in the auction. Sunil Malik, who has captained the Indian team at the Asian Games, is among the players likely to attract considerable attention. Ayan Lochab, Ankit Jaglan and Jaideep Dahiya are also expected to be among the notable names in the auction.

Other players likely to feature include Meetu Sharma, Neeraj Narwal, Yogesh Dahiya, Vijay Malik, Surjeet Narwal and Nitin Dhankhar. The presence of players with international experience is expected to intensify competition among the franchises as they seek to assemble competitive squads for the new season.

The total player budget of Rs 5 crore will be divided among the 10 franchises, with each team receiving Rs 50 lakh to build its squad.

Ahead of the second season, the league has added two new franchises, Kurukshetra Knights and Jhajjar Jaguars, taking the total number of participating teams to 10. The expansion is expected to create more opportunities for players and further intensify competition among the franchises.

Kuldeep Dalal, president of the Haryana Amateur Kabaddi Federation, extended his best wishes to the Kabaddi Champions League ahead of the auction. He wished the organisers, participating franchises and players success in the upcoming season, expressing hope that the competition would provide greater opportunities for emerging kabaddi talent and contribute to the sport's development.

Dalal said the October 17 auction would be an important milestone in finalising the squads for the league's second season. With more than 300 players expected to be available, the auction will play a crucial role in determining the composition of each franchise's team ahead of the competition.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar