24 August,2018 12:09 AM IST | Mumbai | Subodh Mayure
Rakesh Kumar
Former India raider Rakesh Kumar, who led the kabaddi team to a gold medal at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon after overpowering Iran in the final, was shocked at the defending champions' embarrassing 18-27 loss against the same opponents in the semi-final in Jakarta yesterday. "Yeh din bhi dekhne ko milega, aisa kabhi socha bhi nahi tha [I never thought I would have to see this day].
It is beyond my imagination that the Indian kabaddi team is returning from the Asian Games without a gold medal. Today's defeat against Iran hurts me a lot," Rakesh told mid-day from Delhi. Rakesh, 36, explained what could have led to India's failure. "Our boys played under a lot of pressure. There was something missing. They did not play as a team.
'Lacked team spirit'
"I think they lacked team spirit and combination. After our loss to South Korea, the players failed to battle that anxiety over returning home without a gold medal for the first time. During the last Asian Games final against Iran, we were trailing by eight points at half-time, but we were confident of pulling off a win. Indian kabaddi is known for its raiding, but we flopped miserably in this match," added Rakesh.
Meanwhile, talking about the ever-improving Iran, International Kabaddi Federation's ex-CEO and Shiv Chhatrapati awardee Jaya Shetty recalled how the team had shown signs of improvement when they visited Mumbai for the 2004 Kabaddi World Cup.
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An improved Iran team
"It was the first time Iran were playing in a World Cup and they reached the final. We defeated them 55-27, but from their game, it was pretty evident that they would progress. Today, after 14 years, Iran have showed how fast they have learnt from their mistakes. They won mainly because of their strong defence. On the other hand, India suffered because of selection issues," Shetty said.
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