Pro Kabaddi League 2021: Neeraj Chopra sings national anthem before opener, video goes viral

Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) season 8 kicked off in Bengaluru on 22 December after a gap of two years, with the last year being cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The current season began with high-octane kabaddi action on the mat to ensure fans across the country get to watch each of their favourite teams play. Ahead of the opening match, which was between U Mumba and Bengaluru Bulls, Tokyo Olympics gold medallist Neeraj Chopra sang the national anthem at the event.

@Neeraj_chopra1 #NeerajChopra singing National anthem during #ProKabaddi . What a great moment this was! pic.twitter.com/RX376xoVQf

— JaySas (@jaysas_xyz) December 22, 2021

In the season-opener of Pro Kabaddi , Abhishek Singh’s 19-point performance helped U Mumba register a 46-30 win over the Bengaluru Bulls. During the game, Bulls skipper Pawan Sehrawat and raider Chandran Ranjit picked up Super 10s, but U Mumba’s defensive members outscored their Bengaluru counterparts by 13-3. On the opening day of the season, Mashal Sports - organisers of PKL - announced the commencement of the game with an all-captain press conference. In the conference, the team captains mentioned their new strategies, preparations made, and the young players who will shine this season. The 12 captains who represented each team included Joginder Narwal from Dabang Delhi K.C, Pawan Sehrawat from Bengaluru Bulls, Deepak Hooda from Jaipur Pink Panthers, Prashant Kumar Rai for Patna Pirates, Maninder Singh from Bengal Warriors, Sunil Kumar from Gujarat Giants, Vikash Kandola from Haryana Steelers, Nitesh Kumar from UP Yoddha, Fazel Atrachali from U Mumba, Surjeet Singh from Tamil Thalaivas, Nitin Tomar from Puneri Paltans and Rohit Kumar from Telugu Titans. To grace the occasion, Anupam Goswami, CEO of Mashal Sports and League Commissioner, PKL and Yogendra Sriramula, Director, Brand Strategy, Vivo India, the title sponsor of the league were present. For the unversed, Neeraj Chopra competes in the javelin throw event. During his debut at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, he won the gold medal, with a throw of 87.58 m in his second attempt, on 7 August 2021.