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When the Indian men's hockey team won the historic bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics, two people who were in the news, but were not a part of the Indian Team, were Sunil Taneja and Siddharth Pandey. Yes, they were the Hindi commentators in that match, one that changed the future of Indian Hockey.
Six months down the line with the Pro Kabaddi League, Sunil Taneja is again making headlines for his mellifluous commentary. Taneja is one of the few people who have witnessed the Pro Kabaddi League since its inception. He has called the league since the very first match and has seen the game evolve like no other game has in such a small period of time.
His journey, though, has been interesting - from being a doctor to being a household name in Indian Sports when it comes to commentary, Taneja has come a long way.
In an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda, Taneja reveals his secrets of being one of the best commentators in India and his journey.
“First of all, I am no household commentator. There are many legendary commentators who have much more experience than me. I am still in my learning phase and I will be a learner throughout my life” says Taneja when the author regards him as one of the best in business.
Taneja, who pursued his studies in Ayurvedic Medicine from Desh Bhagat Ayurvedic College and Hospital in Punjab, came across a TV advertisement in which Harsha Bhogle said, “Kya aap commentator ban naa chahte ho, kya aap commentator ban sakte ho”?
It was indeed the famous reality show "Harsha Ki Khoj" that opened doors for Taneja as a commentator. It was conceptualized by none other than one of the best commentators of all time - Harsha Bhogle.
“I participated in that very reluctantly but by God’s grace I kept clearing round after round and reached the finals. After that, I went back, cleared my final exams, and was training to be a doctor in six months and one fine day I got a call from the then Head of Production at ESPN, Joy Bhattacharjya, who offered me a three-month internship with ESPN and from then there has been no looking back,” recalls Taneja.
He thanks Joy Bhattacharjya, who is now the CEO of the Prime Volleyball League and one of the most famous names in the sports broadcasting sector, for the opportunity back in 2005.
Taneja has already covered 19 sports in his career spanning above 15 years
From August 2005 to January 2022, Taneja has done commentary across 19 sports, the latest addition being the Ultimate Karate League which concluded just before the commencement of PKL.
He has done all the big-ticket events starting from the Olympics, FIFA World Cup, Euro, HIL, PKL and many more. Taneja says he is just living his dream.
When asked how he manages to get knowledge of all the games that he covers, Taneja says -
“It’s a challenge and in the challenge, lies the excitement. When there is no challenge in life, it becomes very pale and boring. Every sport has different styles and dynamics and we as commentators have to adapt to that. I love to dive deep into the ocean of knowledge when I am covering some sport".
"Staying updated with all the sports is impossible, but thanks to social media and the internet I can get half of the information there. Not that I know everything, but I always try to make sure that my knowledge is never half-baked.”
Read: https://www.sportskeeda.com/kabaddi/exclusive-decoding-secrets-managing-pro-kabaddi-league-team
Like every Indian kid in the 2000s, Taneja also wanted to commentate on the game of cricket until Joy Bhattacharjya asked him to do hockey as Taneja belonged to Punjab and Joy felt that hockey was in his blood.
When you cover several sports, you ought to rethink before you take on the assignment. But Taneja takes it as a challenge. He says, “Every sport has different dynamics. Kabaddi is fast, Hockey is faster, Basketball is fastest, football is comparatively slow, cricket is even slower, and all these aspects make my job more exciting as I have to be different people on different days.”
The Ayurveda doctor focuses only on one sport at a time and tries to understand every rule and regulation of the sport that he is covering. He says that he loves to stay invested in only one sport at a time. When he gets some free time, he loves to hear his own commentary and analyzes his mistakes or shortcomings.
Taneja’s observation of the game is splendid. He has been watching the game so closely for the last eight years that a team can surely make points through his analysis. Take a look below at one of his observations, where he explains Kabaddi and his perspective on the game situation.
Out of the 19 sports that he has covered, Taneja says Kabaddi is one of his favorite sports as that is the one that has given him identity, love, and respect. It is the sport that has made him popular among the fans. But as a commentator, he loves enjoying each and every sport on the planet, while also keeping an eye out for opportunities to work in sports he hasn't covered thus far.
From being a hockey specialist to covering the PKL
Sunil Taneja was covering the Hockey India League and had already become a known name because of his knowledge in the game of hockey, when the broadcasters of PKL (Star Sports) approached him to cover a new sport.
“They approached me, auditioned me and that’s how my journey in the PKL began,” says the man with a charming smile.
PKL has given India a new sport, a sport that already existed - Taneja
Kabaddi’s roots are from Dvapara Yug. Lord Krishna played a game with his friends in Brindaban which was very similar to Kabaddi but it became a household name after 2014 when PKL was started by Mashal Sports.
Kabaddi players were looked down upon. Now those players are waved at airports and have become celebrities. If, after cricketers, there is any sport that has maximum coverage and identity, that is Kabaddi. The lesser-known players, the coaches and even the commentators are being recognized and appreciated.
“The players are superstars today. Just take a look at their social media fan following. In Seasons 1 and 2, on a players’ birthday, there was a huge crowd outside the hotel of kabaddi fans, both boys and girls and I am an eye witness to that. The fan following has increased like nobody would have ever imagined and most importantly it has had a great impact on players,” says Taneja.
"Previously for players, their only source of income was their employers’ salaries but now, someone like Pardeep Narwal is being sold at 1.6 crore. And a good player in PKL makes at least 40-50 lakhs in about three months. So, the lives of players and everyone associated with the game have changed like nobody ever expected", added Taneja.
Taneja recalls that when Rakesh Kumar was told that he was sold for 12 lakhs in Season 1, he didn’t believe it, he thought someone was joking with him. But now the time has changed. Auctions for the top players are starting from 1 Cr., which means that kabaddi players are the new superstars.
The man from Punjab has shared the commentary box with legendary commentators like Ravikant Singh and Sanjay Banerjee, and has also called the game with experts like Rakesh Kumar and Srinivas Reddy. When asked about the difference, he says that the players are here to read the game. They only talk about the technical aspect of the game.
Someone who hasn’t played the sport can never speak about what is going on in a player’s or coach’s mind. Their job is to breakdown the game into pieces and analyze the game with their unparalleled game sense and knowledge.
Sunil Taneja says that he is a fan of kabaddi players but is a bigger fan of the coaches, as coaching is a thankless job. Taneja holds E Prasad Rao, the first coach of the Indian team, and the present Technical Director of PKL, in very high regard. For Taneja, Rao is the encyclopedia of Indian Kabaddi. Whenever he is in doubt, Rao is his go-to man.
“Manpreet Singh was a raider but he always prefers a defense –heavy team. You will never see Gujarat buying superstar raiders at auction. On the contrary, Randhir Singh Shehrawat was a defender, he was called the Great Wall of India, but he prefers to buy star raiders in the auction. So every coach has his own philosophy and that is why I respect all the coaches”, says Taneja.
Speaking to Taneja over the call was a learning experience for the author of this article as well. The man from Punjab and his journey has certainly been an inspiration for many. He has played a crucial role in promoting different sporting disciplines across the nation and we, at Sportskeeda, wish him all the very best.
