Hot Blood

Pro Kabaddi League’s emerging talents have tempered the disappointment of India’s Asian Games campaign

- Deepti Patwardhan

NOT TOO MANY outside kabaddi’s circle knew of Siddharth Desai a month ago. But only three weeks into the 2018 Pro Kabaddi League (PKL), he has become the talk of the town. The 27-year-old had already set a league record of being the fastest to 50 raid points—reaching the milestone in four matches—one less than stalwarts Anup Kumar and Ajay Thakur. After five matches in the PKL, he has scored 66 raid points.

The U Mumba raider was also the architect of one of Season VI’s most memorable moments thus far. With two defenders—the only two on the mat—tackling him close to the mid-line, Desai valiantly stretched his fingertips for safety. When that endeavour failed, he wriggled his lower body and managed to swing one leg past the mid-line to affect the all out.

The move—in a high pressure game against hosts Puneri Paltan that U Mumba eventually lost 32–33—was not only eye-catching but confirmed Desai’s status as one of the league’s best young talents. “He is a rookie,” says Tamil Thalaivas coach E. Bhaskaran. “But he is playing like a seasoned player. He has energy and power.”

Though Desai is new to the league, he has played for Air India and won the Nationals with Maharashtra last year. The rise of the lanky lad from a small town in Kolhapur was just the kind of inspirational stories Indian kabaddi required after the poor Asian Games showing. The sport endured a turbulent September after the Indian men’s national team—seven-time defending champions—lost in the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games semi-finals, failing to reach the continental mega event’s final for the first time since the sport’s introduction into the Games in 1990.