Kabaddi in 2018 at a glance!
Today is the last day of 2018. This 2018 is been the best and sad year for Kabaddi fans. In the month of May, 6 players fetched the price of more than 1 Crore in PKL 6 auctions. Then after in June, the Indian Kabaddi Team won the title of Kabaddi Masters Dubai 2018. But the most disastrous moment came when both Indian teams returned to India without Gold which was shocking for the whole Kabaddi World.
1) India’s dominance at Asian Games came to an end
India’s supremacy in Kabaddi came to an end as India lost to Iran in the semi-final at Asian Games 2018 at Jakarta, Indonesia. In the 28 years of Asiad history, Ajay Thakur led Indian team received Bronze for the first time since its debut at Asian Games in 1990. 7 consecutive Gold medal winning streak was broken by Iran. Indian Men’s Kabaddi Team got defeated by Iran Men’s Kabaddi Team in the semifinals as 18-27. After a shocking defeat of Indian men’s Kabaddi team, women’s team too failed to clinch the Gold for the Country. Iran team beat Indian team as 27-24 and won their first ever Gold in Kabaddi. Iran won both Gold medals in men’s and women’s category. It’s a revolution that has taken place in World Kabaddi.
2) Indian Men’s Kabaddi Team won the inaugurated Kabaddi Masters Dubai 2018
Indian Men’s Kabaddi Team won the title of Kabaddi Masters Dubai 2018 under the captaincy of Ajay Thakur. After cruising past Pakistan and Kenya twice in the group stage Indian Team successfully thrashed South Korea in the semifinals 36-20. Then the team clinched the title of first ever Kabaddi Masters Tournament as they outperformed Iran 44-26. Captain Ajay Thakur was the top raider for India with having 34 raid points. Left corner Girish Ernak turned out to be the best defender with a score of 19 tackle points. Rishank Devadiga, Monu Goyat, and Girish Ernak made their debut for India through this tournament. It was the second title win for India under the leadership of Ajay Thakur. Earlier in November 2017 Indian Team won ‘Asian Kabaddi Championship’ which was held in Gorgan, Iran.
3) Monu Goyat became the highest paid non-cricket athlete with 1.51 Crores
Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) has brought the game of Kabaddi into the limelight. Just in 4 years, Kabaddi has become second most loved game all over the country. For the season, the auction was held in the month of May where Monu Goyat became the most expensive player in the PKL history. With a price tag of Rs 1.51 Crores, he became the highest-paid non-cricket sportsman in Kabaddi. Monu Goyat was bought by Haryana Steelers for Rs.1.51 Cr. Later on, he was appointed as a captain of the team. Rahul Chaudhary was retained by Telugu Titans through FBM for Rs. 1.29 Cr. Deepak Niwas Hooda was purchased by Jaipur Pink Panthers for 1.15 Cr. Nitin Tomar go sold to Puneri Paltan for Rs. 1.15 Cr. UP Yoddha retained their current skipper Rishank Devadiga for Rs 1.11 Cr. through FBM. Iran Kabaddi Team captain Fazel Atrachali is the first foreign player to get paid Rs.1 Cr and he captained the new side of U Mumba.