'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAHAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFQABAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT/xAAVAQEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAFBv/aAAwDAQACEAMQAAAAuqG4H//EACAQAAICAQMFAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEDAgQFAAYRFSIxQWH/2gAIAQEAAT8A6TimSZBuKoBiWrsAwWQCj2BHngHVzF7bXbfAY6PayQ8fdf/EABkRAAEFAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMAAgQRIf/aAAgBAgEBPwAMALcpf//EABwRAAEDBQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEAAgQFERIxsf/aAAgBAwEBPwCZWpmIIfbXF//Z'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Krishna Nagar village in Nashik district of Maharashtra has unraveled a star Kho Kho player who was more inclined towards academics. Dilip Ratan Khandavi was fond of cricket just because kids in his village used to play the popular game, but other than that he had no interest in sports.
It was during an eventful athletics school meet when his sports teacher Wadekar asked him to participate in a 100m race. After he finished first in the sprint, Wadekar offered him the tutelage of a strange sport Kho Kho, which involves sprinting as one of the key factors
With no clue about the basics of the ancient Indian sport, Dilip went with the flow to steadily hold a grip on the technical aspects of it. But he was restless once he felt his growth wasn’t seeking any big distance.
Dilip, who hails from a family in farming, changed three schools in total every time he felt his talent was hindered. He moved to Alangoon Ashram school in the eighth grade as the institution had better facilities for budding players to rise. The main move behind this was to find a place in state competitions after competing in district tournaments for a while.
Once Dilip accomplished his mission, the hunger for nationals prompted him to once again opt for a switch and this time the aim was to play in the nationals. From here on, he started winning several accolades with a bronze medal in his first nationals and later represented Maharashtra at the Khelo India Youth Games season 2 in Pune, where they won gold.
Narrating about his humble background and his struggles at a young age, Dilip told Sportskeeda:
"I have come from a very poor family. We didn’t have a proper transportation facility in our village like there was no bus. If I wanted to go anywhere, I had to walk for 3 kilometers, and from there I could find some suitable carrier to travel. In my family, my father, mother, and brothers are into farming. Two of my (four) brothers are married and I am currently pursuing my education at Lovely Professional University .”
The Krishna Nagar-born player further explained how his family stood as a rock for him even though they were in testing times. He added:
“My family never let me feel short of money whenever I had competitions as they believed that we couldn’t do anything big so they wanted me to do something.
"Small boys in my village watch me on TV and they feel very much excited by that. They now feel like ‘we also want to be like Dilip Dada’. Sometimes they do call me and ask me to train them once I am back in the village.”
Ultimate Kho Kho resurrects Dilip Khandiva’s sinking sporting career
There was a moment in Dilip’s life when he was dismayed by a national selection snub and quit his ambitions of making it big in Kho Kho. He stopped his practice sessions for close to nine months and joined his family in farming.
He was obstinate with his decision but things changed when the Maharashtra player was picked up by Odisha Juggernauts in the inaugural season of Ultimate Kho Kho in the A category, which meant that he hit a jackpot of ₹5 lakhs.
Dilip also was key to the Odisha outfit clinching the inaugural title in the first season. He stood tall as a defender for the Juggernauts for 17 minutes and 14 seconds with an average time of 1.43 seconds spent on the mat in 10 matches. He was adjudged ‘Defender of the Match’ in the final against Telugu Yoddhas in season 1.
Odisha couldn’t defend their title despite Dilip’s presence in the second season after they lost to eventual champions Gujarat Giants in the semi-final. Dilip Khandavi was honored with the Veer Abhimanyu Pursakar by the Maharashtra Kho Kho Association for his phenomenal run in the 2019-20 season.
