Pro Kabaddi League: From Patna Pirates To Bengaluru Bulls, List Of Past Champions

Patna Pirates completed a hat-trick of titles after they beat Gujarat Fortune Giants in the finals of 2017 Pro Kabaddi League

PKL Season 9

The seventh season of the Pro Kabaddi league will kick-start from July 20 in Hyderabad. The season opener will witness Telugu Titans locking horns with U Mumba in the first match of opening Day. Defending champion Bengaluru Bulls will lock horn with three-time champion Patna Pirates in the second game of the opening day. The grand finale of season 7 will be held on October 19. Twelve teams featuring 441 players will compete against each other in a three month long season with an aim to lay hands on the coveted title. Here is a list of all the champions from the past edition of the Pro Kabaddi league Pro Kabaddi League 2014 Champions - Jaipur Pink Panthers Pro Kabaddi League's maiden season had an inaugural champion from the city of Jaipur. Abhishek Bachchan-owned Jaipur Pink Panthers won the first season of the Pro Kabaddi League, defeating U Mumba in the final. Eight teams competed in the double round robin format, with the top four getting a place in the semi-finals. Bengaluru Bulls and Patna Pirates were the other two semi-finalists along with Jaipur and Mumbai based franchise. U Mumba defeated the Bengaluru Bulls 27-23 while Jaipur thumped Patna Pirates 38-18 to secure a berth in the first ever Pro Kabaddi League final. U Mumba’s captain Anup Kumar was named the Player of the Season. He was the best raider of the tournament, winning 155 points for his team. Pro Kabaddi League 2015 Champions - U Mumba After ending Season 1 as the losing finalists, U Mumba went onto become the champions in the very next season. The Mumbai-based team had a spectacular season and finished the group stages at the top of the points table. Telugu Titans, Bengaluru Bulls, and Patna Pirates were the other three teams to qualify for the semi-finals. The Bulls edged Titans 39-38 in a hard fought contest while U Mumba made it to the second consecutive final with a 35-18 victory over Patna Pirates. Manjeet Chhillar of the Bulls was named the Player of the Season for his all-round performance throughout the tournament. Pro Kabaddi League 2016 Champions - Patna Pirates The Patna Pirates won the third season of the Pro Kabaddi league by defeating U Mumbai in the grand finale. Patna defeated Pune Paltan 40-21 in the semi-final to enter the title clash of the tournament for the first time in three attempts. In the other semifinals, U Mumba defeated Bengal 41-29 to secure berth in their third consecutive final the hat-trick of finals. Rohit Kumar of the Pirates was awarded Man of the Series for winning 102 raid points throughout the tournament. Pro Kabaddi League 2017 Champions - Patna Pirates The 2017 Pro Kabaddi season saw the league being expanded from 8 to 12 teams with the addtion of UP Yoddha, Tamil Thalaivas, Haryana Steelers and Gujarat Fortune Giants Gujarat Fortune Giants who were playing their maiden season made it to the final where they faced two times champions Patna Pirates. Two time champs Patna Pirates won the final 55-38 to complete the hat-trick of championships. Pro Kabaddi League 2018 Champions - Bengaluru Bulls Season 6 of the league saw Bengaluru Bulls emerge as the champion after beating Gujarat Fortune Giants in the title clash. The Bulls defeated Gujarat in the first qualifier to enter the final for the second time after 2015. But Gujarat also qualified for the second consecutive final, defeating UP Yoddha 38-31 in the qualifier 2. Bengaluru Bulls, who had reached the semis in 2014 and 2015, finally got their hands on the trophy, after winning the final 38-33. Gujarat, on the other hands, Gujarat suffered second consecutive defeat in the final.