There has never been any doubt about Rahul Chaudhari’s commitment towards his craft. The Telugu Titans captain, who is now at the top of the raiders’ leaderbaord in the Star Sports Pro Kabaddi Season 4, is the first man to score 400 raid points in the entire league.
Riding on his brilliant leadership skills, the men in yellow have not lost their last six matches and have now propelled themselves up to the second spot in the Season 4 standings. Against the Dabang Delhi team in the Kolkata leg on Tuesday, Chaudhari amassed a staggering 16 points to guide them to a 36-28 win over the Eagles.
During one raid, he even smashed his head on Prashant Chavan’s jaw but like a true commander of his ship, he returned with a bandaged head to see his team through.
Also Read: Pro Kabaddi 2016, Season 4: Team of the Kolkata Leg
Rahul made light of that incident when asked about it during the media interaction and nonchalantly said: “Jeetne ke liye sab kuch kar sakta hain” (I can do everything to get the win.)
"Full confidence in reviews"
Perhaps Chaudhari’s attitude is the reason why the Titans have looked so inspired lately. The 23-year-old even showed how to use the reviews wisely during the clash with Delhi. At a critical juncture, a tackle point that was initially awarded to Delhi was ultimately declared to be a super raid for Chaudhari.
“Whatever review we asked for, we took them only after fully confirming so that we do not run the risk of losing it. That was vital and that was why we had full confidence that our reviews would be successful, “ the skipper commented about the success of the reviews.
Our path to the semi-finals is clear: Sandeep Narwal
Grappler Sandeep Narwal too played a crucial part by contributing five points in defense. Narwal was with the defending champions Patna Pirates in Season 3 and he certainly knows a thing or two about winning.
When asked if the title is what he is aiming for once again, he confidently said: “Yes, absolutely, that’s the mission. Our defense was not up to the mark in our first couple of matches this season but after that it has improved by leaps and bounds. If we had lost today’s match, then there would have been enormous pressure on us.
“But now that we have won, our path to the semi-finals at least looks clear.”
Sandeep has been one of the biggest stars in the Pro Kabaddi for the past few seasons. He was quizzed on what he thinks is the reason behind such popularity and he replied that his dedication to his practice is what makes brings out the best on the mat each evening. And that is the sole reason why people have started liking him.
The conversation once more veered to how Rahul made a turnaround after his first match in the Kolkata leg where he was tackled a few times by the Bengal Warriors and tie ended up in a 34-34 draw.
He admitted that he was not at his best the day before but was determined to make amends against the Dabang Delhi. And the crowd support was fantastic that helped him further, Rahul acknowledged.
“We got a lot of support and that felt very nice. We have always had a lot of cheers from Bengal fans and this time was no exception. I hope people keep on rooting for us just like this,” he signed off.
