On the sidelines of the DPS Gandhinagar’s Annual Sports Meet, seated amongst other dignitaries, were two national kabaddi players viz. all-rounder Sandeep Narwal and defender Amit Hooda. They were the guests of honour at the sports event, alongside Gujarat Sports Minister Ranjeet Trivedi and Indian fast bowler Munaf Patel.
But, unlike their fearless style of play on the kabaddi mat, the two players adopted quite a shy demeanour when they were the focus of the limelight, having recently won the Kabaddi World Cup and being a part of the glitzy and glamorous Pro Kabaddi League.
However, they opened up later at the media interaction with the press, when Amit Hooda, who plays for the Jaipur Pink Panthers in the PKL spoke about how their lives have transformed since the inception of the league and through the course of its four successive seasons. He was quoted as saying to the Ahmedabad Mirror that, “There was a time when people were not aware that kabaddi was played at the international level.
We didn’t have the kind of exposure that other sports have. But that has changed now especially with pro kabaddi league coming to the fore. People watch us play on television and the kind of following and support the sport has got is fantastic.”
Sandeep Narwal, who dons the Telegu Titans jersey in the Pro Kabaddi League and was also one of the star players in the Anup Kumar led Indian team which won the 2016 Kabaddi World Cup in Ahmedabad also echoed his fellow players’ opinion. “The World Cup saw us beating some really talented teams in the fray and winning the Cup at home. It was interesting to watch teams like South Korea play their best game. There are talks that kabaddi could be a part of the Olympics sooner. And when that happens, winning a gold for India will be a dream come true for us.”
Narwal further added, “Yes we did not have the sort of recognition that other athletes had. But with the TV exposure, people stop me on the streets as they recognise me from the telly. I feel gratitude for the honour the sport has given me.”
However, fans of the sport will have to wait before they see these two players in action along with a host of others, for the next season of the Pro Kabaddi, is scheduled to take place mid-way through 2017.
