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Chennai, Dec 21 (PTI) Gaining an Olympic berth is not an impossible task for kabaddi, but for that the sport needs to gain a solid foothold outside India, reckoned Tamil Thalaivas head coach Ashan Kumar.
Kumar felt that initiatives like Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) has improved the standing of the sport in the country, but more has to be done for it to acquire a global image.
“Unless you promote the game outside the country, it will never grow. Once kabaddi got included in the Asian Games, we got the opportunity to teach the sport in various countries like Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and more….” Kumar told PTI during an exclusive interaction on the sidelines of PKL here.
“If you want the sport to be included in the Olympics, you have to develop it in other nations as well. Thinking that PKL is hurting us as foreigners are learning our tricks is extremely foolish. We should keep promoting it and also keep working on improving our gameplay.” “Kabaddi is limited to Asian Games, where we have been gold medalists in most instances. PKL has definitely helped us in nurturing the sport.” Echoing his sentiments, Thalaivas’ CEO Shushen Vashishth added the thought of overseas players learning the tricks was baseless.
“Dominance looks good, but it’s never a healthy sign for any sport. We need competition. The foreign players are indeed learning our tricks through PKL, but it must be taken positively that the sport is becoming more popular overseas.” “But, we also need to up our game since other teams are also looking to learn the sport. We should consider this as an opportunity (to improve kabaddi’s quality). We have to ensure that more players emerge from the grassroots level. It would only act as a feeder to the sport,” he added.
Vashishth also underlined PKL’s importance.
“PKL has taken the sport to a global platform, which has led to teams other than India faring well, for example, Iran. Kabaddi is slowly regaining its long-lost popularity, and sooner or later it will be a part of the Olympics.” “Discipline and dedication are a must” =========================== Kabaddi, though gaining in popularity, places several challenges on a player, most of which is unknown to outsiders.
Vashishth described how a player can tide over the barriers.
“Kabaddi has mainly two challenges – internal and external. External challenges include atmosphere, injuries and sickness. Even during home matches, some players get excited, while some come under pressure. To handle such situations, a player needs to be trained adequately.” “As for the internal challenges, it has to be ensured that the player is trained as per the situation, especially during practice sessions so that he does not take any undue pressure upon him. We must ensure that we help a player in overcoming psychological challenges,” he detailed.
That discipline, Vashishth felt, was extremely important to succeed in the sport.
“A player must concentrate on his discipline, diet and utter dedication towards his sport to succeed in the longer run. One must never be under the belief that he is top class. Whoever thinks that way will only attract his downfall.” “A senior player starts underperforming when his muscle movements slow down. He has to ensure to train in the same way the stronger players on the bench are training. He must not get demotivated by a loss or his injuries,” he added.
However, Ashan said having a strong bench strength is always beneficial for a side.
“The bench strength needs to be strong enough, which would only lead to the team performing better. Likewise, a good performance by the team would also inspire the (underperforming) players in the side to give their best.” “Kabaddi is here to stay” ================== Vashishth urged the Amateur Kabaddi Federation Of India and the Indian Government to do the needful to help the players to sustain the growth of the sport.
“Kabaddi is an Indian sport, and it’s here to stay. We have to ensure that the sport is played regularly in the coming years, which would only lead to us winning gold medals.
The federation and government should keep organising regular camps and fulfil the players’ needs to help the sport prevail in the country,” he concluded. PTI AYG UNG
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
