Pune, 6th April 2019: Arjuna Awardee Anup Kumar has been appointed as new lead coach of Puneri Paltan for upcoming Pro Kabaddi League 2019 in season 7. The Pro Kabaddi League 2019 Season 7 is scheduled to be held in Dec 2019 - Jan 2020.  The Puneri Paltan team is favourite kabaddi team of Pune.

The Puneri Paltan, Pune’s favorite kabaddi team has appointed Ex-India Captain, Kabaddi’s Captain Cool and Bonus ka Badshah, Anup Kumar, as the new head coach for Season 7 of Vivo Pro Kabaddi League.

Anup Kumar was also awarded Arjuna Award by Government of India in 2012 for his contribution towards sports. He is a retired player of Vivo PKL Season 6 and now decided be a coach of Pune team. This appointment will bring lot of experience and skills for Pune’s favorite kabaddi team.

Anup Kumar was a brilliant Kabaddi player and he gave outstanding performance as a player. His first international participation was in 2006 at the South Asian Games. In this game Indian Men’s Kabaddi team won the gold medal. He was captain of the team and won the gold medal in 2010 and 2014 Asian Games.

In his captainship India won the 2016 Kabaddi World Cup trophy. Under the captainship of Anup Kumar, India strengthened its position as a leading Kabaddi globally.

He was awarded with Arjuna Award by the Government of India in 2012 for dedication and invaluable contribution towards Kbaddi.

Speaking on the appointment of the new coach, Kailash Kandpal, CEO of Puneri Paltan said, “Anup is vastly experienced in the PKL format and known for his cool and calm composure. We are banking on his expertise to implement new tactics this season for our team.”

Speaking on the occasion, Anup Kumar said, “Kabaddi is my first love and I have given everything for the sport. As a coach, this will be my first stint and I will concentrate on improving our team's skills, fitness and presence of mind on the mat. I am looking forward to working with Puneri Paltan, as a coach, in Vivo PKL Season 7.”

 In December 2018,  Anup Kumar announced his retirement from Kabbadi games. He began his international career in 2006 by participating in South Asian Games in Sri Lanka for India. He played for India and secured gold medal at the Asian Games.

--Deepak Kumar