Telugu Talons

Full nameTelugu Talons
Founded2023
OwnerKankanala Sports Group
Head CoachFernando Nunes
CaptainShubham Sheoran
LeaguePremier Handball League
20233rd

The Telugu Talons are a professional Indian men's handball team that competes in the Premier Handball League. The Telugu Talons are the only team from South India in the league and finished the 2023 edition as semi-finalists.[1] The team is currently owned by the Kankanala Sports Group.[2]

Season history

Premier Handball League, 2023

The inaugural season of the Premier Handball League saw the participation of six franchises and was held in the Sawai Mansingh Indoor Stadium from June 8 to June 25. The Telugu Talons got off to a winning start, winning their first two games against Garvit Gujarat and Golden Eagles UP.[3][4] This was followed by two consecutive defeats against the Maharashtra Ironmen and the Delhi Panzers before they went on a 4-game win streak culminating in a second win against the Golden Eagles UP.[5] The Talons wrapped up their league stage campaign with a victory over Garvit Gujarat.[6]

The Telugu Talons secured their qualification to the semi-final in their debut season in the competition. They faced defeat in a tightly contested encounter, going down 4–3 in a penalty shootout against the Golden Eagles UP in the semi-final.[7]

Rahul TK was awarded the Golden Glove for his league-high 184 saves over the course of the tournament.[8]

List of matches played in 2023[1]
Date Score Winner
League Stage
June 8 Telugu Talons 39-32 Garvit Gujarat Telugu Talons
June 9 Golden Eagles UP 38-40 Telugu Talons Telugu Talons
June 11 Maharashtra Ironmen 30-26 Telugu Talons Maharashtra Ironmen
June 12 Delhi Panzers 29-27 Telugu Talons Delhi Panzers
June 14 Rajasthan Patriots 24-28 Telugu Talons Telugu Talons
June 15 Telugu Talons 26-23 Delhi Panzers Telugu Talons
June 17 Telugu Talons 33-22 Rajasthan Patriots Telugu Talons
June 18 Telugu Talons 26-25 Golden Eagles UP Telugu Talons
June 20 Telugu Talons 30-30 Maharashtra Ironmen Match Drawn
June 21 Garvit Gujarat 28-36 Telugu Talons Telugu Talons
Semi-Final
June 24 Telugu Talons 40-40 (3–4) Golden Eagles UP Golden Eagles UP (won on penalties)
Premier Handball League 2023 Points Table[9]
Rank Team Matches Won Lost Draw Points
1 Maharashtra Ironmen 10 7 2 1 15
2 Telugu Talons 10 7 2 1 15
3 Rajasthan Patriots 10 7 3 0 14
4 Golden Eagles UP 10 3 6 1 7
5 Delhi Panzers 10 3 7 0 6
6 Garvit Gujarat 10 1 8 1 3

Team records

Telugu Talons' Players in Premier Handball League, 2023
Player Name Total Shots Total Goals Shot Efficiency Penalty Shots Penalty Goals Steals Assists
Naseeb Singh 113 78 69% 35 26 4 7
Kailash Patel 87 68 78% 16 16 3 7
Davinder Bhullar 102 58 57% 1 0 7 37
Anil Khudia 83 38 46% 1 1 4 66
Mohit Kumar 52 28 54% 0 0 3 16
Rahul Nain 29 22 76% 0 0 4 2
Raghu Kumara 26 15 58% 0 0 2 7
Vishal Hadia 32 15 47% 0 0 4 18
Shubham Sheoran 25 11 44% 2 1 1 9
Ajay Moyal 9 6 67% 0 0 0 8
Chirag Chandel 13 6 46% 2 1 1 1
Mohit Yadav 6 3 50% 0 0 0 0
Iaroslav Shabanov 7 2 29% 0 0 1 2
Rey Joshua Tabuzo 2 1 50% 0 0 0 0
Goalkeepers
Player Name Total Saves Save Efficiency Penalty Save Penalty Save Efficiency Assists -
Rahul T K 184 40% 4 13% 5
Andrei Nedbailo 10 23% 6 27% 0
Sombir 0 0% 0 0% 0
Overall Team Stats
Title Total League Rank
Total Team Goals 351 Third
Total Team Saves 195 Third
Penalty Goals 45 First
Wing Goals 71 Second
FastBreak Goals 24 Second
Breakthrough Goals 37 First
Shot Efficiency 60% First
Penalty Shot Efficiency 79% Third
Penalty Saves 10 Fourth
Save Efficiency 33% First
Total Steals 34 Second

Team Sponsors

The Telugu Talons announced a sponsorship agreement with A23, an online multi-gaming platform ahead of the start of the Premier Handball League 2023 season. A23 served as the main title sponsor for 2023 season.[10] Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University was announced as the training partner for the season and also hosted the official jersey launch of the Telugu Talons.[11]

Paradise, Ethames, Malla Reddy, Oxyloans and Prakash Projects were announced as associate sponsors for the season.[11] Mirchi FM served as the official entertainment partner and Whizzy was named the official delivery partner of the Telugu Talons.[11]

Sponsor list for the 2023 season
S.No Sponsor Title
1 A23 Title Sponsor
2 Paradise Associate Sponsor
3 Ethames Associate Sponsor
4 Malla Reddy Associate Sponsor
5 Oxyloans Associate Sponsor
6 Prakash Projects Associate Sponsor
7 Mirchi FM Entertainment Partner
8 JNTU Training Partner
9 Whizzy Delivery Partner

Honors

Premier Handball League, 2023[8]

  • Rahul TK - Golden Glove Award
  • Kailash Patel - Moment of the Season (vs Maharashtra Ironmen) [12]

Roster[1]

Squad
No. Name Position
1 Andrei Nedbailo Russia Goalkeeper
2 Iaroslav Shabanov Russia Left back
3 Rey Joshua Tabuzo Philippines Right back
4 Naseeb Singh India Right wing
5 Anil Khudia India Centre back
6 Shubham Sheoran India Left back
7 Kailash Patel India Left wing
8 Rahul T K India Goalkeeper
9 Raghu Kumara India Pivot
10 Mohit Kumar India Right back
11 Chirag Chandel India Right wing
12 Vishal Hadia India Right back
13 Mohit Yadav India Left wing
14 Davinder Bhullar India Left back
15 Ajay Moyal India Centre back
16 Sombir India Goalkeeper
17 Rahul Nain India Pivot

Administration and support staff

[1]

Position Name
Owner India Kankanala Sports Group
Head Coach PortugalFernando Nunes
Assistant Coach India Sachin Kumar Bhardwaj

References

  1. ^ a b c d "Premier Handball". www.premierhandball.com. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  2. ^ "Telugu Talons and Delhi Panzers join Premier Handball League". Hindustan Times. 2023-04-22. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  3. ^ "Telugu Talons Beat Garvit Gujarat in Premier Handball League". Deccan Chronicle. 2023-06-08. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  4. ^ "Second consecutive victory for the Telugu Talons as they edge past Golden Eagles Uttar Pradesh". Online Media Cafe. 2023-06-09. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  5. ^ "PHL 2023: Telugu Talons defeat Golden Eagles U.P. by a solitary point". www.daijiworld.com. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  6. ^ "PHL: Telugu Talons' Classy Victory Over Garvit Gujarat". Deccan Chronicle. 2023-06-21. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  7. ^ "Golden Eagles Uttar Pradesh Beat Telugu Talons to Enter PHL Finals". Deccan Chronicle. 2023-06-24. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  8. ^ a b "Premier Handball | Premier Handball League: Maharashtra Ironmen crowned inaugural champions". www.premierhandball.com. 2024. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  9. ^ "Premier Handball League- Points Table, Standings, Points". thebridge.in. 2023-06-08. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  10. ^ Mahadik, Gauresh (2023-05-30). "Telugu Talons forge sponsorship deal with A23". SportsMint Media. Retrieved 2024-05-24.
  11. ^ a b c "Telugu Talons New Jersey launched for inaugural season of Premier Handball League". India Education | Latest Education News | Global Educational News | Recent Educational News. 2023-06-05. Retrieved 2024-05-24.
  12. ^ Hoover, Mark (2023-06-25). "Premier Handball League 2023: Full List Of Award Winners, Prize Money, Stats And Records Of PHL Season 1". myKhel. Retrieved 2024-05-23.