Patna Pirates’ Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh made the most tackle points in Pro Kabaddi Season 8: 89 in 24 matches. The Iranian averaged 3.71 a match, completed 86 successful tackles and took 10 High 5s, which was then the most by any player in a single PKL season. Season 8 ran from 22 December 2021 to 25 February 2022, all at one venue in Whitefield, Bengaluru, behind closed doors. Patna reached the final and lost it 37-36 to Dabang Delhi, the closest final the league has had.
Tamil Thalaivas right corner Sagar Rathee was second with 82 tackle points in 22 matches (74 successful tackles, eight High 5s). His 3.73 a match was the best average of the season, just ahead of Chiyaneh’s 3.71.
Bengaluru Bulls’ Saurabh Nandal finished third with 69 (63 successful tackles in 24 matches). Haryana Steelers’ Jaideep was fourth with 66 in 22 matches, including five High 5s, and UP Yoddhas’ Sumit completed the top five with 62 in 24. U Mumba’s Rinku Sharma and Puneri Paltan’s Sombir shared sixth on 60; Sombir got there in 19 matches, at 3.16 a match. Four defenders tied for tenth on 53, so the table below runs to 13 names.
Most tackle points in PKL Season 8
| # | Player | Team | Mat | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh | Patna Pirates | 24 | 89 |
| 2 | Sagar Rathee | Tamil Thalaivas | 22 | 82 |
| 3 | Saurabh Nandal | Bengaluru Bulls | 24 | 69 |
| 4 | Jaideep | Haryana Steelers | 22 | 66 |
| 5 | Sumit | UP Yoddhas | 24 | 62 |
| =6 | Rinku Sharma | U Mumba | 22 | 60 |
| =6 | Sombir | Puneri Paltan | 19 | 60 |
| 8 | Nitesh Kumar | UP Yoddhas | 24 | 57 |
| 9 | Parvesh Bhainswal | Gujarat Giants | 23 | 56 |
| =10 | PO Surjeet Singh | Tamil Thalaivas | 20 | 53 |
| =10 | Sandeep Kumar Dhull | Jaipur Pink Panthers | 19 | 53 |
| =10 | Neeraj Kumar | Patna Pirates | 23 | 53 |
| =10 | Aman | Bengaluru Bulls | 23 | 53 |
How 89 compares with other seasons
When Season 8 ended, Chiyaneh’s 89 was the second-highest tackle total in a PKL season, behind Nitesh Kumar’s 100 for U.P. Yoddha in Season 6. Two later seasons have moved it down to joint third: Jaipur’s Ankush also made 89 in Season 9, and Chiyaneh himself came within one point of the record with 99 for Puneri Paltan in Season 10. He took 11 High 5s that season, which replaced his own 10 from Season 8 as the single-season record.
| Season | Top defender | Team | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (2014) | Manjeet Chhillar, Surender Nada | Bengaluru Bulls, U Mumba | 51 |
| 2 (2015) | Ravinder Pahal | Dabang Delhi | 60 |
| 3 (2016) | Manjeet Chhillar | Puneri Paltan | 61 |
| 4 (2016) | Fazel Atrachali | Patna Pirates | 52 |
| 5 (2017) | Surender Nada | Haryana Steelers | 80 |
| 6 (2018-19) | Nitesh Kumar | U.P. Yoddha | 100 |
| 7 (2019) | Fazel Atrachali | U Mumba | 82 |
| 8 (2021-22) | Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh | Patna Pirates | 89 |
| 9 (2022) | Ankush | Jaipur Pink Panthers | 89 |
| 10 (2023-24) | Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh | Puneri Paltan | 99 |
| 11 (2024) | Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh | Haryana Steelers | 82 |
| 12 (2025) | Navdeep | Patna Pirates | 73 |
Chiyaneh after Season 8
Season 8 was the start of a long run at the top. He made 84 tackle points for Patna in Season 9 (second to Ankush), then led the list in Season 10 with Puneri Paltan and in Season 11 with Haryana Steelers, and both of those teams won the title. He was named MVP of Season 11. In Season 12 he made 37 in 17 matches for Gujarat Giants.
Through the end of Season 12 he has 391 tackle points in 109 matches, joint fifth on the all-time list with Manjeet Chhillar; Fazel Atrachali leads with 597. His 3.59 a match is the best rate of anyone in the all-time top 12, and his 34 High 5s put him level with PO Surjeet Singh, two behind Fazel’s 36.
More PKL records: the top raiders of all time, the highest team scores and every PKL champion. Betting on Season 13? See our guide to kabaddi betting sites.
Stats: prokabaddi.com official season and all-time statistics, to the end of Season 12. Featured photo: Pro Kabaddi