Sushil Kumar Given Cash Award by Pro Wrestling League Uttar Pradesh Franchise

The Uttar Pradesh franchise of the Pro Wrestling League (PWL) awarded their icon player Sushil Kumar Rs.11 lakh on Monday.

"Pro Wrestling League's and UP franchise's icon player and two time Olympic champion Sushil Kumar awarded Rs.11 lakhs. The team believes that the double Olympic medallist is highly valuable for the team and the nation as well," the franchisee said in a statement.

Lotus Greens, the owners of the franchise, bought Sushil for Rs.38.20 lakh after an intense bidding war at the auction on November 3.

The inaugural edition of the Pro Wrestling League, to be held from December 10-27, will feature six teams. Apart from Uttar Pradesh, the other teams will be from Punjab, Bengaluru, Delhi, Haryana and Mumbai.

The PWL auction saw a total of 159 domestic and international players go under the hammer, of which 54 were picked up (nine by each team).

Yogeshwar Dutt, a bronze medallist at the 2012 London Olympics, attracted the highest bids and was bought for Rs.39.70 lakh by team Haryana. Sushil got the second highest bid among the Indian male wrestlers and was bought for Rs.38.2 lakhs.

Talented young wrestler Narsingh Pancham Yadav got the third highest bid and went to the Bengaluru franchise for Rs.34.5 lakh.

The teams spent a total of Rs. 10.80 crore at the auction. Each team has four categories of players -- international men (two players per team), international women (two players per team), Indian men (three players per team), and Indian women (two players per team).

The PWL will see a total of 18 matches including 15 in the league phase, apart from the semi-finals and final.