Farce at kabaddi trials to pick the best

NEW DELHI: It was supposed to be chaotic and it lived up to its billing. Hyped as a trial to select the best players who would take on the national kabaddi team, the event commenced with school and college-going students thronging the Indira Gandhi Stadium and leaving in the evening none-too-wiser on Saturday.

Flooded with litigations over “unfair” selection of the Indian men’s and women’s kabaddi teams for the Asian Games in Jakarta, the Delhi High Court had in August directed the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India (AKFI) to conduct trials for those not selected in the national team.

But little did the panel of observers, which included a retired judge, sports ministry officials and petitioners, know they will have to contend with novices. Players, mostly from Delhi, were clueless why they had been called for trials. “I was told by my coach to come for a match, so I am here,” said a player, who did not wish to be named.

Former player and Arjuna Awardee C Honnappa, one of the petitioners who had filed a case against the AKFI, was disappointed, saying, “It’s strange that many of the top players who weren’t selected for the Games have opted out. It’s evident that they don’t want to spoil their chances of playing in the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) by alienating the federation.”

To add to the mess, a 12-member team arrived from Bangalore under the aegis of the New Kabaddi Federation of India (NKFI), bided their time in the stadium and left a chastened lot.

Almost all the panel members were tightlipped about the farce, with the court-appointed observer and administrator of the federation, Justice SP Garg (retd), saying he won’t speak on the issue as, being an observer, he is “supposed to first submit his report to in court” Sports Authority of India (SAI) executive director and member of the selection panel, Meena Bora, too declined to comment.