The basic rules of kabaddi were formalized in India in the early 20th century and published in 1923. The game received international exposure when it was demonstrated by an Amravati-based sports organization at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin, and it was included as an event in the Indian Olympic Games held in Calcutta (now Kolkata) two years later. Following its formation in 1950, the Kabaddi Federation of India organized national championships for men beginning in 1952 and for women beginning in 1955. In the late 20th century the popularity of organized kabaddi began to expand beyond India’s borders, in part through the efforts of the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India, formed in 1972. That same year kabaddi was designated the national game of Bangladesh. With the establishment in 1978 of the Asian Amateur Kabaddi Federation, a regional championship was organized, and national kabaddi teams began to compete in the Asian Games in 1990.
Although unverified, theories from various sources state that kabaddi originated from the Vedic period of ancient India.[5] The game was said to have been popular among the Yadava people; an abhang by Tukaram stated that the god Krishna played the game in his youth, while the Mahabharata contains an account of Arjuna being able to sneak into hostile areas also take out enemies unscathed—a passage said to parallel the gameplay of kabaddi. There are also accounts of Gautama Buddha having played the game recreationaly.[
Kabaddi, also spelled kabbadi or kabadi, game played between two teams on opposite halves of a field or court. Individual players take turns crossing onto the other team’s side, repeating “kabaddi, kabaddi” (or an alternate chant); points are scored by tagging as many opponents as possible without being caught or taking a breath before returning to one’s home territory. Indigenous to South Asia, kabaddi is also known as hu-tu-tu in western India, ha-do-do in eastern India and Bangladesh, chedu-gudu in southern India, gudu in Sri Lanka, and theechub in Thailand.
Variations :
Standard style :
in the international team version of kabaddi, two teams of seven members each occupy opposite halves of a court of 10 by 13 metres (33 ft × 43 ft) in case of men and 8 by 12 metres (26 ft × 39 ft) in case of women.[13] Each has five supplementary players held in reserve for substitution.[14] The game is played with 20-minute halves with a 5-minute half break in which the teams exchange sides.[15] During each play, known as a “raid”, a player from the attacking side, known as the “raider”, runs into the opposing team’s side of the court and attempts to tag as many of the seven defending players as possible. The raider must cross the baulk line into the defending team’s territory, and then return to their half of the field without being tackled. (If an attacker touches a defender and hasn’t yet reached the baulk line, they don’t need to reach the baulk line to score points and may return to their half of the court.)[16] While raiding, the raider must loudly chant kabaddi, confirming to referees that their raid is done on a single breath without inhaling. Each raid has a 30-second time limit.
Circle style :
There are four major forms of Indian kabaddi recognised by the amateur federation.[21] In Sanjeevani kabaddi, one player is revived against one player of the opposite team who is out. The game is played over 40 minutes with a five-minute break between halves. There are seven players on each side and the team that outs all the players on the opponent’s side scores four extra points. In Gaminee style, seven players play on each side and a player put out has to remain out until all his team members are out. The team that is successful in outing all the players of the opponent’s side secures a point.
International competitions
Kabaddi World Cup :
The Kabaddi World Cup is an outdoor international standard style kabaddi competition conducted by the International Kabaddi Federation (IKF), contested by men’s and women’s national teams. The competition has been previously contested in 2004, 2007 and 2016. All the tournaments have been won by India. India defeated Iran by 38-29 in the final of the championship game to clinch the title of 2016. a 2019 Kabbadi World Cup was held in April 2019 at Malacca, Malaysia. It was the largest world cup in kabaddi history, consisting of 32 men teams and 24 female teams.[27]
Asian Games :
Kabaddi was played as a demonstration event at the First Asian Games in 1951, and again in 1982, before becoming a medal event for the first time in 1990.
The Indian national team won every men’s and women’s kabaddi competition in the Asian Games from 1990 through 2014. At the 2018 Asian Games, Iran became the first country other than India to win gold medals in kabaddi, with India’s men’s team winning bronze, and India’s women’s team being beaten by Iran to win silver.
Pro Kabaddi League :
The Pro Kabaddi League quickly became a ratings success on Indian television; the 2014 season was watched by at least 435 million viewers over the course of the season, and the inaugural championship match was seen by 98.6 million viewers.
Additional rules are used in the Pro Kabaddi League to encourage scoring: when a defensive side has three or fewer players remaining, tags are worth two points instead of one. Furthermore, if a team performs two empty raids in a row, the next raider must score a point, or else they will be declared out and the opposing team will score a point.
European Kabaddi championship
The first edition of European Kabaddi Championship was held in Scotland in 2019. The final match was between Poland and Holland, Poland won the tournament. Final score was Poland 47–27 Holland
Popularity
In Bangladesh, there is a variation of kabaddi called Ha-du-du, going back to ancient times. Ha-du-du has no definite rules and is played with different rules in different areas. Kabaddi is the national sport of Bangladesh, given official status in 1972. The Amateur Kabaddi Federation of Bangladesh was formed in 1973.
Kabaddi is one of the national sports of Nepal. Kabaddi is played and taught in most primary schools beginning in about the third grade in most Nepali schools. Kabaddi was also played by the British Army for fun, to keep fit and as an enticement to recruit soldiers from the British Asian community. Kabaddi was brought to the United Kingdom by Indian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani immigrants. The governing body for kabaddi in the United Kingdom is the England Kabaddi Federation UK.
By the early 21st century international competition typically involved seven players per team performing on a rectangular court, although other styles (such as “circular” kabaddi) remained popular in India and elsewhere. The first Kabaddi World Cup, staged in Mumbai (Bombay) in 2004, hosted national teams from Asia, Europe, and North America.
International Kabaddi Rankings Country Wise :
- India
- Iran
- Pakistan
- Thailand
- Bangladesh
- Kenya
- Poland
- England
- United State
- Japan
