Stage set for Pro Kabaddi league

July 25, 2014 11:52 pm | Updated November 16, 2021 05:33 pm IST - Mumbai:

Uncertainty hangs over the participation of Pakistan players in the inaugural Rs. one crore prize money Star Sports Pro Kabaddi League set to start at the National Sports Club of India (NSCI) here on Saturday.

The five-week, eight-team league will see U Mumbai lock horns with Jaipur Pink Panthers and Delhi taking on Bengaluru in the first two matches on the opening day.

While the Indian High Commission in Islamabad on Thursday granted Atif Waheed and Wajid Ali (both Telugu Titans), Waseem Sajjad (Patna Pirates) and a technical official their visas, it rejected the applications of Nasir Ali (Jaipur) and Asian Kabaddi Federation secretary Mohammad Sarwar.

Jaipur Pink Panthers, which had made a Rs. 4 lakh successful bid for Pakistan Army’s Nasir Ali, will now be given a replacement to complete its squad before the match against U Mumbai.

The Indian players are looking at ProKabaddi as an ideal platform to prepare for the Incheon Asian Games in September-October. All 36 probables who have been training for the Games in Bangalore since January are part of the eight franchise teams. In a bid to make it fast and entertaining over a period of 40 minutes, former India coach and current technical director of the national federation, Prasad Rao has laid out new rules for the league.

Rakesh Kumar, who was picked up by Patna Pirates for a record Rs. 12.8 lakh, said he was happy with the prize structure and prize money — Rs. 50 lakh for the winner, Rs. 25 lakh for the runner-up and Rs. 12.5 lakh each for the semifinalists.

The best raider, defender and the best catch will receive Rs. 10,000 each for each of the league’s 60 matches.

Top News Today

Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.