Highlights, Pro Kabaddi League Auction 2018, Day 1

After the conclusion of cash-rich Indian Premier League (IPL), it is now time to shift your focus to another exciting tournament - Pro Kabaddi League which is slated to begin in October later this year. A total of 422 players will go under the hammer during a two-day-auction for the sixth season of the Pro Kabaddi League, which begins on Wednesday (May 30) and Thursday (May 31).

Pro Kabaddi Auction 2018 Live Streaming: Of the 422 players, 87 players are from the Future Kabaddi Heroes (FKH) programme while there are 58 foreign players from 14 countries including Iran, Bangladesh, Japan, Kenya, Republic of Korea, Malaysia and Sri Lanka. Also, for the first time, the concept of "Final Bid Match" (FBM) will be introduced. As per the FBD process, the franchises will be entitled to match the final bid made by another franchise, for one or at most two players from its previous season squad.

HIGHLIGHTS DAY 1, PRO KABADDI LEAGUE AUCTION 2018

Take a look at the players who were sold and retained by the 8 franchises in the Pro Kabaddi League as season 6 is shaping up become more nerve-wracking and exciting than last season.

# Monu Goyat - Sold to Haryana Steelers for Rs.1.51 Crore. He has smashed all records! The Most Expensive player in Season 6 of the Pro Kabaddi League

# Rahul Chaudhary - Retained by Telegu Titans for 1.29 Crore.

# K Prapanjan - Sold to Gujarat Fortunegianst for Rs. 38 Lakhs

# Rishank Devadiga - UP Yoddha's match bid for Rs.1.11 Crore via FBM (Final Bid Match)

# Anup Kumar - Sold to Jaipur Pink Panthers for Rs.30 Lakh

# Nitin Tomar - Sold to Puneri Paltan for Rs. 1.15 Crore, equals the most expensive buy of Deepak Niwas Hooda

Last Category of Day 1 - Raiders

# Sandeep Dhull bought by Jaipur Pink Panthers for Rs.66 Lakh

# Surender Nada has been bought back by Haryana Steelers for Rs.75 Lakhs, the most expensive Indian defender.

# Deepak Nivas Hooda becomes the most expensive player in the Pro Kabaddi League 2018 auctions. In an intense battle, Hooda was bought for a mammoth 1.15 crores! Smashing all records and will now play for the Jaipur Pink Panthers.

Earlier, Fazel Atrachali became the costliest buy when he was bagged for a whopping 1 crore, but with Deepak Hooda smashing all records, Jaipur Pink Panthers are building a new and improved team this season.

We resume with the auctions so stay tuned.

Another strong Iranian in the Mumba camp -

# List of retained players

Bengal Warriors: Surjeet Singh, Maninder Singh

Bengaluru Bulls: Rohit Kumar

Dabang Delhi K.C.: Meraj Sheykh

Gujarat Fortunegiants: Sachin, Sunil Kumar, Mahendra Rajput

Haryana Steelers: Kuldeep Singh

Patna Pirates: Pardeep Narwal, Jaideep, Jawahar Dagar, Manish Kumar

Puneri Paltan: Sandeep Narwal, Rajesh Mondal, More GB, Girish Maruti Ernak

Tamil Thalaivas: Ajay Thakur, Amit Hooda, C. Arun

Telugu Titans: Nilesh Salunke, Mohsen Maghsoudloujafari

Jaipur Pink Panthers: No players retained

U Mumba: No players retained

UP Yoddha: No players retained

For the upcoming edition, a total of 21 players were retained by nine teams while three teams -- U Mumba, Jaipur Pink Panthers and UP Yoddha -- decided to start from scratch without retaining any player. While each team could retain only one member of the previous season, this time they have been allowed to keep up to four members from their previous squad. These players form the 'Elite Retained Players' category. Each franchise will be allowed to keep a team of minimum 18 players and a maximum of 25 players, including three from the FKH programme and two to four overseas players. Each franchise will get Rs 4 crore to form their teams. The players drafted in the auctions have been split into five categories (A, B, C, D, and New Young Players). While players in the A, B, C, and D categories have been set a base price of Rs 20 lakh, 12 lakh, 8 lakh, and 5 lakh respectively, the New Young Players have been fixed a price of Rs 6.6 lakh.

When will the Pro Kabaddi League 2018 auction take place?

The Pro Kabaddi League 2018 auction will take place on Wednesday and Thursday (May 30 and 31).

Where is the Pro Kabaddi League 2018 auction being held?

The Pro Kabaddi League 2018 auction will be held in Mumbai.

What time does the Pro Kabaddi League 2018 auction start?

The Pro Kabaddi League 2018 auction will start in the morning at around 10 am. However, the live telecast is to begin in the evening at 6:30 pm when the Domestic Category A players will go under the hammer.