It's bigger, better and it's back

After an incredible inaugural season, the Pro Kabaddi league is back in the action, starting today. The inaugural match will be between the champions of the first season, Jaipur Pink Panthers and U Mumba, the finalists. The first season saw a record viewership of 435 million and the organisers are keen to make this season better and bigger by improving the quality of matches with increased players and broadcasting the matches in five different languages across eight channels. 

The first season was organised by the International Kabaddi Federation, Asian Kabaddi Federation and Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India. It was the second most watched league in the country, after the Indian Premier league (IPl).In its opening season, eight teams participated — Jaipur Pink Panthers (Jaipur), U Mumba (Mumbai), Bengaluru Bulls (Bengaluru), Patna Pirates (Patna), Telugu Titans (Vizag), Dabang Delhi (Delhi), Bengal Warriors (Kolkata) and Puneri Paltan (Pune). The players were overwhelmed with the response the league got from the people. This year, the organisers aim at reviving the sport’s glory.

The new season will see a pool of national and international players. The league is expected to reach audiences in over 100 countries including United States, United Kingdom, Middle East and latin America. It will also feature a commentary team reporting from ‘ground zero’, which is a new concept for Indian sports television. The opening night will feature legendary actor Amitabh Bachchan lending his voice for the National Anthem.

There is huge anticipation following Amitabh Bachchan’s ‘lePanga’ rap, Salman Khan’s promos and various advertisements on television.Kabaddi has the right mix of ingredients — skill, speed, strategy, power and mind games for any sport lover to take it up as a career option.In agreement with that is Navneet Gautam, captain of Jaipur Pink Panthers. “The public mindset has changed after the inaugural season. Now, I see young people playing kabaddi seriously and enjoying it like never before. Wherever I go, people recognise me. I am overwhelmed with the response I am getting. Parents should encourage their children to play the sport and let them pursue their dream if they want to be sportspersons,” he said.

Surjeet Narwal of Dabang Delhi feels their team has improved going into this season. “We have good players and we are aiming to win the trophy. last time we took the lead in all our matches but then towards the end we used to throw it away. We have good players now and I hope this is not the case this time. Our squad will play with mind and power.

“last season Surjeet was among top five raiders of PKl with 113 points, this time however he has a few plans and surprises for his opponents. I have learned few new techniques, worked on my weaknesses which will surprise my opponents,” he added.Dabang Delhi has roped in Honappa C Gowda as their coach, an Arjuna Awardee himself and former Indian captain with wealth of experience is excited to be a part of PKl and coach Dabang Delhi.

Jaipur Pink Panthers coach, Kasinathan Baskaran feels the pressure of being defending champions will be something that his team will have to deal with. “Being defending champions is not at all easy. There is always pressure of performing better. But we will play with the same intensity and the same force like we did last year.

“We have got five new players (three from Rajasthan, two from Haryana) and also three international players from Korea, Japan and Nepal. We have the confidence to win the first game against U Mumba. The players have good standards, speed, flexibility, so there is nothing to be worried about.”

Jay: The war man from Nepal

Hailing from the small town of Kanchanpur, on the border of Nepal and Uttarakhand, Jay Bahadur has joined Dabang Delhi as their raider. “I am very happy and excited to be here. It’s like a dream come true. I will learn a lot here and take my team to the top to win the trophy,” he tells you.Jay is passionate about the game and is here with a high difficulty quotient. He has fought a war, combatted with Maoists. Jay is an army man and is from the Run Bheem Regiment. He was part of the rescue team for the earthquake which struck Nepal in April, causing big-scale damage.

Recalling the catastrophe, Jay says: “At that time, I was at home but I was called by my regiment so I reported there immediately. I was there for 3-4 days. All I could see was dead bodies and a lot of blood.” Having said that, his focus is now on Kabaddi and he wants to take his team to the top and win trophy for them. His love for the game has been with him since he was 13 years old.

“Since I have come here I have learnt new techniques and rules which were not there when I used to play in my village. All the team members help me out and give me suggestions on how I can rectify my mistakes and weaknesses. I talk to other raiders and we plan on some new strategies to beat our opponents.”Jay has played the National Games and two international games.