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Ultimate Kho Kho is one of the few leagues that have returned for a second season. With plans to grow it further and ensure it lasts for multiple years, the management has been working tirelessly to make it a success.
After the introduction of a homegrown sport to the world in the form of a commercialised league, the Indian audience was quick to respond positively to it. With some interesting rules that captured the market in no time, Ultimate Kho Kho proved its worth early on.
The second season being held in Cuttack, Odisha has drawn unimaginable crowds, with the home team Odisha Juggernauts receiving stellar support whenever they take the mat.
The scoring rules, which were tweaked ahead of the season, have made the game simpler to understand for the audience, allowing them to focus on the action. The slight tweaking of the rules has indeed proven to be effective.
Having received some heavy investment from BNP ahead of the second edition, Ultimate Kho Kho is setting benchmarks for other Indian sporting leagues on how to build a robust and successful business model.
As the league continues to impress us with some incredible Sky Dives, Pole Dives and Dream Runs, here are three runs why Ultimate Kho Kho could be the next big sporting league in India, much like the Indian Premier League and Pro Kabaddi League:
#4 No Dearth of Young Talent
Kho Kho is a sport that most of us would have played in our PE periods in school. While most of us remember it from then, there are multiple people who have taken it up professionally. In Kho Kho hotspots like Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and South India, getting even into the state team for the Nationals is no mean task.
While Kho Kho, similar to other high-pace contact sports, might see the players not having a very long shelf life courtesy of injuries, there will be no dearth of fresh young legs ready to take the mat.
#3 Action, Entertainment and Immaculate Production of Ultimate Kho Kho
There is absolutely no shortage of action at Ultimate Kho Kho, with dives being put by the players left, right and centre. There is a dopamine-inducing moment for the audience nearly every minute, and the suspense of what follows keeps them hooked.
What has helped the league has been the high-quality standard of capturing these moments. They have made sure that there is no stone left unturned in taking this experience to the audience at home. With a spider-cam and multiple cameramen putting in the hard yards, there has been absolutely no compromise in delivering nothing but the best to the audience.
#2 Simplified yet riveting rules
Ultimate Kho Kho started off their first season with some ambitious rules which completely changed the complexion of the sport. With Wazirs, powerplay, Dream Run and additional points being awarded for Sky Dives and Pole Dives, the sport had recieved a complete makeover.
However, in order to make the sport more audience-friendly, the league decided to tweak the scoring rules a little. The removal of the additional points for the dives resulted in the audience being able to focus more on the action that was unfolding in the middle. All this has further helped the league achieve a model where they can grow successfully even further.
#1 Short, result-oriented matches
Another rule that was changed in Ultimate Kho Kho as compared to traditional Kho Kho was the change in time. Instead of having 9 minutes per Turn, UKK features a short 7-minute Turn, which makes the total game time to be effectively just 28 minutes.
With reviews and break time between batches, turns and innings, the match is completed inside an hour. With multiple points being scored across the hour, unlike football, the game is very unlikely to end in a draw. This leaves the audience with a sense of satisfaction.
While Ultimate Kho Kho is just starting off, it has all the makings of being a successful sporting league in India that can span over multiple seasons.
