Hailing from the small town of Nashik, Akash Shinde grew up nurturing lofty ambitions, though the route to achieving them remained uncertain. In fact, no player from his district had ever carved a path to the national kabaddi stage before him. Today, however, he stands as a shining example of what perseverance can achieve.

A Pro Kabaddi League Season 10 champion, Shinde recently commanded a price of Rs 53.10 lakh when Bengaluru Bulls secured his services at the PKL Season 12 Player Auction. Now poised to spearhead a youthful squad, he is determined to lead a young team towards glory.

"No one in my family played kabaddi. It was more popular in my village, but no one from my district, Nashik, had played at the national level before. That made it a real challenge. Still, I trusted my process and kept working hard," says Shinde, remembering those early days when success seemed far away.