This content has been archived. It may no longer be relevant

On Monday (October 2), the kabaddi competition at the upcoming Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou gets underway. The men’s and women’s kabaddi teams from India will then start their campaigns. From October 2 to October 7, the Indian women’s and men’s kabaddi squads will compete.

On October 2, the Indian women’s team takes on Chinese Taipei in their tournament opener, while on October 3, the Indian men’s squad will face Bangladesh.

India, a kabaddi superpower, disappointed themselves and their supporters by failing to win gold medals in the men’s and women’s categories at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta. In 2023, the two teams are present in China with the intention of putting the past in the past and establishing their dominance within the traditional touch sport.

Speaking on the composition of the Indian men’s kabaddi squad at the Asian Games, two-time Asian Games gold medalist Ram Mehar Singh remarked. He said, “The Indian men’s team is a very strong side. It’s the best team that could’ve been selected, and I am confident that we will win the Gold medal.”

The Pro Kabaddi League (PKL), an indigenous domestic kabaddi competition in India, is credited by Ram Mehar, the present-day coach of the Pro Kabaddi League’s Team Gujarat Giants, with the rise of kabaddi in the nation.

The head coach further added, “Kabaddi has received a big boost through the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL). Earlier, when I was India captain, Kabaddi wasn’t such a popular sport, and now we are second only to cricket. Through PKL, kabaddi has grown not just in India, but all over the world.”

When analysing the women’s kabaddi team’s strength, Mamtha Poojari, the two-time Asian Games gold medalist, asserted that the Indian ladies had the lineage to be on top of the podium.

She stated that, “Iran has been a dominant force in Kabaddi in recent years, but I am hopeful and confident that both the Indian teams will do better than the previous edition, and come back with the Gold.”