“It is in our genes. It is our game popular in rural areas and patronised by the rural youth,” beams K. Bhaskaran, the coach of the newly formed Tamil Thalaivas kabaddi team. Tamil Thalaivas enters the fray for the first time at the fifth edition of the Pro Kabaddi League which starts from July 28 in Hyderabad and ends with the final match on October 28 in Chennai.
Tamil Nadu team is owned by a consortium of cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and businessman N. Prasad, who also owns the Kerala team in ISL football league, UP Yoddha, owned by the GMR group (the owners of the IPL team Delhi Daredevils), Gujarat Fortune Giants, owned by the Adani group and Haryana Steelers, owned by the JSW group (who also run the Bangaluru FC in the football league). It will join the other eight teams including Jaipur Pink Panthers and Puneri Paltan this season.
The team was in Madurai to participate in an exhibition match to promote the game and the league. Coach Bhaskaran dubs this as a big opportunity to take the game to another level. “Our boys are naturally tuned for the game. You don’t have to teach them but only hone their skills. I see plenty of potential here,” he says. Bhaskaran who has captained Tamil Nadu, that won National Kabaddi title consecutively for three years, was also the coach for the Jaipur Pink Panthers which won the first edition of the league. The second league was one by U Mumba team while the third and fourth editions title winners were Patna Pirates. Kabaddi is nothing new as boys in Tamil Nadu have been playing ‘sadugudu’ for centuries. Temple festivals in villages is incomplete without the game played. “But, we failed to promote kabaddi in schools.Educational institutions should promote the game in a big way,” he says.
Madurai; Tamil Nadu; 12/07/2016. Coach K. Bhaskaran and team captain Ajay Thakur. G. Moorthy.
Despite lack of support, kabaddi survives because of the deep-rooted passion for the sport among the youth. “Kabaddi has all the important life skills to keep one healthy. It develops a fighting spirit and helps a player ward off challenges effectively,” says Bhaskaran.
Tamil Thalaivas is headed by Ajay Thakur, a star raider from Himachal Pradesh. He played a stellar role in helping the country win the world cup last year. He has helped his team Bengaluru Bulls win league matches many times. “His attitude is infectious and he unites the team and fights till the end. We have a nice blend of experienced and junior players. The average team age is 22,” says Bhaskaran. The coach also banks heavily on another star player Amit Hooda, who was the first one to be picked up in the players’ auction for the team.
In an attempt to unearth talent and create a pool of players, the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India along with the Mashal Sports and Star Sports conducted a talent search programme across the country for players between 18 and 22 years. Chennai and Coimbatore were two centres in Tamil Nadu to organise the event. Of the 5,000 players who participated, 320 were selected for the camp in Sports Authority of India centre, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, where they were further short listed to 120 for the month-long camp. “It was easy for the franchises to choose players from the camp and 56 of them made it to the league. Tamil Thalaivas took five players from the pool, Madurai boy Prathap is one of them,” informs Bhaskaran.
After four years, the league has come to the kabaddi heartland and will definitely see a surge in the patronage for the game in the State. “Look for the ‘jallikattu kick’, our way of expression to celebrate a winning moment,” says Ajay Thakur, the captain.
