Last 5 Orange Sleeve Winners in Pro Kabaddi

Raiders grab the headlines, but titles are won at the back. A defender who can pin the best raiders in the league and turn tackles into points is worth his weight in gold, and in Pro Kabaddi the man who does it better than anyone else across a season earns the Orange Sleeve.

The award is a nod to the unglamorous, hard yards of kabaddi. Over the last five seasons, it has gone to corner specialists and all-rounders alike. Here is a look at the last five Orange Sleeve winners, the seasons they ruled, and where they stand today.

What is the Orange Sleeve in PKL?

The Orange Sleeve is the recognition handed to the leading defender of a Pro Kabaddi season. Put simply, it goes to the player who scores the most tackle points across the campaign.

A tackle point is earned every time a defender stops a raider and sends him off the mat. Rack up the most of those over a full season, and you finish with the Orange Sleeve on your arm. It is the defensive mirror of the Green Sleeve, which goes to the top raider, and together the two awards mark out the best raider and the best defender of each season.

Before we go through the winners one by one, here is a quick look at the last five.

Season	Player	Team (that season)	Tackle Points
Season 12	Navdeep	Patna Pirates	73
Season 11	Mohammadreza Shadloui	Haryana Steelers	82
Season 10	Mohammadreza Shadloui	Puneri Paltan	99
Season 9	Ankush Rathee	Jaipur Pink Panthers	89
Season 8	Mohammadreza Shadloui	Patna Pirates	89

Season 12: Navdeep (Patna Pirates)

Navdeep is the newest name on this list and one of the feel-good stories of Season 12. A young defender who only debuted in Season 11 with Patna Pirates, he stepped up a year later to finish as the season’s top defender with 73 tackle points and claim the Orange Sleeve.

He did it across 21 matches at a tackle success rate of 50 per cent, making 130 tackles in all and averaging 3.09 successful tackles per match. His haul included 8 Super Tackles and 6 High 5s, a sign of a defender who saved his best for the tight moments when Patna needed a stop.

Navdeep is still very much a Patna Pirates player, and having broken through so quickly, he looks like a defender the franchise can build its back line around for years to come.

Season 11: Mohammadreza Shadloui (Haryana Steelers)

Season 11 belonged to Mohammadreza Shadloui, listed on the official leaderboard as Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh. The Iranian all-rounder topped the defensive charts with 82 tackle points for Haryana Steelers to win the Orange Sleeve, and he did it in a title-winning campaign.

Across 24 matches, he tackled at a 51 per cent success rate, made 152 tackles in total and averaged 3.25 successful tackles per match, with 4 Super Tackles and 5 High 5s. On top of that, he chipped in with the ball in hand, adding 57 raid points from his raids, which is exactly the kind of two-way value that makes him so hard to plan against.

Season 10: Mohammadreza Shadloui (Puneri Paltan)

Rewind one more season and the Orange Sleeve was already in Shadloui’s hands. In Season 10, playing for Puneri Paltan, he put together the biggest defensive haul on this entire list with 99 tackle points, and capped it with the league title.

The numbers from that campaign are outstanding. In 24 matches, he averaged 4.04 successful tackles per match, the best rate among these five winners, made 164 tackles at a 59 per cent success rate, and brought up 11 High 5s. That is the return of a defender who was not just winning tackles but dominating the corner week after week.

Shadloui now defends for Gujarat Giants, but back-to-back title runs with Puneri Paltan in Season 10 and Haryana Steelers in Season 11 make him one of the most decorated defenders the league has seen.

Season 9: Ankush Rathee (Jaipur Pink Panthers)

Ankush Rathee announced himself in the best way possible. Season 9 was his debut season, and rather than easing in, he finished as the league’s top defender with 89 tackle points for Jaipur Pink Panthers to win the Orange Sleeve in a title-winning year for his side.

What stands out is how clean his defending was. Across 24 matches, he tackled at a 64 per cent success rate, the highest among these five winners, made 132 tackles in all and averaged 3.5 successful tackles per match, with 9 High 5s and 5 Super Tackles. For a rookie to defend with that kind of accuracy on the biggest stage is rare.

Ankush has moved around since then and last turned out for Bengaluru Bulls in Season 12, but that debut campaign remains one of the standout first seasons by any defender in the league.

Season 8: Mohammadreza Shadloui (Patna Pirates)

The story comes full circle in Season 8, which is where Shadloui’s Orange Sleeve collection began. Playing for Patna Pirates in what was his debut PKL season, he topped the defensive charts with 89 tackle points and won the award at the very first attempt.

He racked up those points across 24 matches at a 56 per cent tackle success rate, making 153 tackles in all and averaging 3.58 successful tackles per match, with 10 High 5s and 3 Super Tackles. Winning the league’s top defender award as a newcomer told everyone that a special talent had arrived.

Shadloui has represented several teams since and now plays for Gujarat Giants, but it was in the Patna Pirates jersey that his remarkable run of defensive dominance first took off.

One name keeps coming back

Look down the list and one thing jumps out. Mohammadreza Shadloui has won three of the last five Orange Sleeves, in Seasons 8, 10 and 11, and he did it with three different teams in Patna Pirates, Puneri Paltan and Haryana Steelers. Only Ankush Rathee in Season 9 and Navdeep in Season 12 broke his grip on the award.

That kind of consistency across different squads, roles and defensive partners is almost unheard of for a defender. It also shows how the Orange Sleeve rewards the whole season and not one big night. Shadloui kept turning up with big tackle counts year after year, wherever he played.

At the same time, the wins for Ankush Rathee and Navdeep, both in or just after their debut seasons, show the award is not closed off to newcomers. A young defender who tackles well enough can walk straight to the top of the charts, and both did exactly that.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Orange Sleeve in Pro Kabaddi?

The Orange Sleeve is given to the best defender of a Pro Kabaddi season, meaning the player who finishes with the most tackle points across the campaign.

Who has won the most Orange Sleeves in PKL?

Mohammadreza Shadloui stands out, winning the Orange Sleeve in Season 8, Season 10 and Season 11 with three different teams.

Who won the Orange Sleeve in Season 12?

Navdeep of Patna Pirates won the Season 12 Orange Sleeve with 73 tackle points, and he is still with the franchise.

What is the difference between the Orange Sleeve and the Green Sleeve?

The Orange Sleeve goes to the season’s top defender by tackle points, while the Green Sleeve goes to the season’s top raider by raid points.

Conclusion

The last five Orange Sleeve winners are a reminder that defence wins seasons in Pro Kabaddi. Mohammadreza Shadloui set the standard with three titles worth of tackling across three teams, Ankush Rathee proved a rookie could rule the corner, and Navdeep carried the tradition forward for Patna Pirates. Wherever they play now, each of them once finished a season as the best defender in the league, and that is the whole point of the Orange Sleeve.

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