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The sport of Kabaddi has seen a meteoric rise since the inception of the Pro Kabaddi League, which was introduced to the masses back in 2014. Over the years, the league has manifested into one of India's best franchise-based tournaments, unearthing some of the best talents across the globe.
One such star, who has earned a major status in the world of kabaddi is the 'poster boy' of Indian kabaddi, Rahul Chaudhari.
Set to ply his trade for the Tamil Thalaivas in the upcoming edition of Pro Kabaddi, Chaudhari will be playing for a team other than the Telugu Titans for the first-ever time in the history of the tournament.
The leading point-scorer in the history of the league, Chaudhari has been one of the most consistent raiders in the sport. Barring his poor show by his lofty standards in season six, Chaudhari's talent comes without question.
With 876 points from 100 matches across six editions of the franchise-based league, Chaudhari is one player whose fan-following only goes up with each passing season, courtesy of his fantastic performances. However, the ace raider claims that he feels no pressure to live up to a whole lot of those expectations.
I might be the highest point-scorer in the league but I do not feel any pressure to perform since I prepare according to my strengths for every season. There is a lot of effort put into fitness and improving my skill and my focus is not on earning records to my name.
Shifting base from the Telugu Titans to the Thalaivas, Chaudhari will be joining forces with Ajay Thakur for the upcoming season and the five-star raider is pumped to partner with the Thalaivas skipper, with the former crediting the latter for his upbringing.
I am very excited to play with Ajay Thakur, who has always treated me like his brother and always instills confidence in me. He was the one who helped me earn a spot in the Indian team through my performances for Air India and to be honest, it is a big surprise for me that I will be re-uniting with Ajay. I am also excited and happy to play under his captaincy.
Yet, quite contrary to his high-flying standards leading up to the sixth season, Chaudhari did not enjoy the best of form in season six, a result of which saw the Telugu Titans crashing out in the league stages. However, Chaudhari claims that the past has faded into the shadows and now his focus lies on the season ahead.
What has happened is in the past and while I was slightly out of form, the main issue was that I was not able to perform up to the team's expectations. Yet that is behind me and now my focus is on the upcoming season, to put my best foot forward and lead the Thalaivas to a title.
For a man of Rahul Chaudhari's stature, it is easy to be bogged down by the weight of expectations from the fans. Yet, the ace raider manages to keep himself away from the spotlight and has his plans chalked out from the beginning of the seventh season.
Personally, my aim will be to score a whole lot of points for my team. There are a lot of quality players in this team and overall, our squad wears a very strong outlook. I hope that our team goes all the way with the potential that is present in the team.
The Thalaivas unit is stacked with quality, with the likes of Ajay Thakur, Manjeet Chhillar, Mohit Chhillar, Ran Singh along with Rahul Chaudhari set to form the core of the team. When quizzed about the Thalaivas' chances to go all the way, Chaudhari signs off with some optimism about his team's chances.
We have some excellent quality raiders in our team and so do all the other teams. However, the point to note is that the defensive strength in teams wins them matches. Most teams have at least two good raiders and this season, we also have a very strong defensive core that can hopefully see us win the title.
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