Kabaddi World Cup: Nitin Tomar — Wrestling's loss is kabaddi's gain

AHMEDABAD: It is believed that every child who reaches the age of nine is taken to an akhara in Baghpat's (UP) Malakpur village. Considered a grooming-ground of wrestlers, as many as three Arjuna Awardee wrestlers -

Shokender Tomar

,

Rajiv Tomar

and

Alka Tomar

- call this hamlet their home.

However, there is another Tomar who is making a name for himself at who is making a name for himself at the national level, albeit, in kabaddi. An all-rounder in the Indian team, Nitin, 21, too started off with wrestling. With two of his chachajis (paternal uncles) - Ashok and Parhlad Tomar - turning out for India, it was but natural for him to take the sport seriously. Like his peers, Nitin started early and slugged it out in the akhara at the age of six. However, he soon said goodbye to the sport after he moved to Maharishi Dayanand Public School where there was no wrestling culture.

"I was good at wrestling too but had to shift to kabaddi due to lack of access to wrestling in my school," said Nitin who is a resilient raider and more than handy defender.

A petty officer with the Indian Navy, Nitin believes the wrestling training he received early on is helping him become a better kabaddi player. "I climbed the rope while I trained with wrestlers. That explains my upper-body strength," he said with a grin. The young lad will be donning India jersey No. 13 -a number he hopes will bring him and his team all the luck.