Patna: Star raider of the Patna Pirates, Pardeep Narwal, has been retained by the team for the sixth season of Pro Kabaddi League.

The auction ceremony for the new season, which will start on October 19, was held in Mumbai on Wednesday and Thursday. Narwal, last season's captain, was retained for Rs 60.5 lakh.

Defenders Jaideep and Manish were retained for Rs 55 lakh and Rs 29.05 lakh respectively while Deepak Narwal was bought for Rs 57 lakh. A total of 181 players were bought by 12 franchises at the auction last week, with the home team maintaining a balance between experienced star players and new talents.

None of the players in the squad, however, is from Bihar like last year.

Pawan S. Rana, chief executive officer, Patna Pirates, said: "Patna Pirates has always focused on the quality of the game and strived to raise the standard of kabbadi. Our players have always thrilled sports lovers through their mental and physical skills during highly competitive matches. The Pirates have retained star players and also brought in fresh talent to add a new dimension to team and we are confident to retain the title."

The team has won the league thrice - twice in 2016 and once last year.

Sources said Patna Pirates will shift base to Patna from Ranchi where it moved last year. A team official said on condition of anonymity: "The Patna Pirates matches will be played in Patna and Ranchi."

As the team is popular in both Bihar and Jharkhand the team is with discussion with Mashal sports plans to shift matches in both Patna and Ranchi." The Mashal sports in which Star Sports owns major stake has been organizing Pro Kabaddi League matches at different locations since season its inception in 2014.

Patna Pirates had performed consistently in all their league appearances with the only team to reach playoff matches in all 5 seasons and winning the title thrice in a row.