FORMER ARMY MAN SAYS DROP CRICKET, PLAY KABADDI INSTEAD

A technical expert, who once served the Indian defence forces, wants to shape the ancient game of kabaddi in such a style that Indians will forget cricket in a decade’s time. It has not happened yet, and Indians continue to consider cricket their religion.

- SHANTANU GUHA RAY

But Ravi Shetty, who retired from the office of the Bengaluru-based Defence Quality Control and then travelled to Punjab to get trained at the Patiala-based National Institute of Sports (NIS), says it will happen and kabaddi will one day outrun, outsmart cricket.

And he says he is not daydreaming. He calls kabaddi and cricket the perfect example of the hare and tortoise race.

He says there is enough swag in this rural sport that has now changed its format, telecast on a Rupert Murdoch channel and has players stretching from Kenya to Iran.

This is indeed mind boggling.

“Kabaddi is growing very fast all over India, hordes are coming to enrol in teams which have mushroomed across the country. It is no longer a rural game,” Ravi Shetty, top coach of Patna Pirates, said in an interview.

The Pirates are the most successful team in the history of Pro Kabaddi League (PKL), which has commentators who once prided themselves in covering top class football and cricket matches. Out of eight editions of the league, the Pirates won the third, fourth and fifth editions.

“We haven’t done well this year; we are languishing at 11th standings but will come back next year with a bang because we will have many young players. And that will be our turning point. This year the mix and match of the players just did not work for the team,” says Shetty.

Pirates were the losing finalists last year.