Mumbai, July 31: Within three days after its start, The ProKabaddi league has fascinated India who almost forgot the Indian game which needs a combination of strength, skills and brain.
Artful players like Rakesh Kumar, Anup Kumar, Surender Nada, Shabeer Bapu Sharfudheen, Wazir Singh, Jitesh Joshi, Surjeet Narwal, Kashiling Adake and Rahul Choudhari have made a fine impression thus far.
The teams participating are Bengal Warriors, Puneri Phaltan, U Mumba, Bengarulu Bulls, Dabang Delhi, Jaipur Pink Panthers, Patna Pirates and Telugu Titans.
Rakesh Kumar, who was bought by Patna Pirates for Rs. 12.8 lakh, became the face of the competition during the Mumbai leg of the league. Many others are on the way to achieve stardom. It would be fair to say that the league has helped Kabaddi scale new heights.
With more than a month to go and the league set to reach different parts of India in the coming days, there are enough clear indications that ProKabaddi sponsored by Star Sports is here to stay.
“There will be inadequacies. The NSCI capacity is around 3,500. The turnout was good on the opening day. I was a little anxious on the second and third day because of rain. But it got better. We are blessed,’’ said Charu Sharma, of Mashal Sports.
Sharma who calls Kabaddi a “truly indigenous and has heritage value’’, decided to start a professional league after seeing India win gold medals at the Doha Asian Games. It has taken time for Sharma, but he appears to be a happy man at the NSCI.
After an absorbing tie between U Mumba and Telugu Titans, the home team’s Anup Kumar was asked if he could predict an uninterrupted ten year run for the league. His spontaneous reply was: “Not ten, but fifty years. It has been a great experience so far in Mumbai. We expect the same elsewhere in the country. We have not played often is such a big venue and atmosphere.’’
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