As India begins its
kabaddi World Cup
campaign in Ahmedabad from October 7, Bangalore Times spoke to the Indian captain and star raider
Anup Kumar from the training ground, who will lead India’s charge. Anup spoke at length about India’s chances, home advantage and responded to the Iranian captain’s comments about turning the tables on India.
Anup said that preparations were in full swing as the mood in the team camp is upbeat. “It is a huge plus point that the World Cup is happening in India, as it will give my team the much needed confidence and support. Playing against teams like Australia, the UK and Kenya might be a bit tough, but we are looking forward to it. On the other hand, there are teams like Iran and South Korea, that we will focus on and plan accordingly.”
Responding to the comment by Iran captain Meraj Sheykh that his team can turn the tables on India, Anup said, “He can say anything he wants; what will matter is the performance on the ground. Talking won’t help, because India is ready to win the cup this year. That is our only goal.”
Commenting on the growth of
kabaddi as a sport, the
Arjuna Awardee
believes that the inclusion of celebrities has benefitted the sport. “Bollywood personalities have a huge fan following. So, if an
Amitabh Bachchan comes for a match, even those who don’t watch the sport may come, which is good for the sport to develop. We saw this in the kabaddi league.”
Meanwhile, most kabaddi players have a special move up their sleeve and for him, it is the toe-touch. “Toe-touch has been my special and you will definitely get to witness it at the games,” Anup said and added that apart from this, there are a few other moves that he and his team have been honing for the World Cup. But for now, the captain and his men cannot wait to get on the field and don the blue jersey.
The Squad:
Anup Kumar (captain)
Manjeet Chillar (vice-captain)
Ajay Thakur
Deepak Hooda
Dharmaraj Cheralathan
Jasvir Singh
Kiran Parmar
Mohit Chillar
Nitin Tomar
Pardeep Narwal
Rahul Chaudhari
Sandeep Narwal
Surender Nada
Surjeet
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