'Things I own now were once just dreams': PKL, Services star Rahul Sethpal

After establishing himself as a defensive stalwart in the Pro Kabaddi League PKL Haryana Steelers Rahul Sethpal claimed the PKL Season 11 trophy won gold at the 71st Senior National Kabaddi Championships and proving himself as the teams best right corner defenderHis journey from a small village in Panipat to becoming a professional Kabaddi player is an inspiring one and woven with passion something he opened up about in the latest episode of Rise of a Star on the PKLs official YouTube channelTracing his roots to Bapulia village Sethpal recalled as quoted by a PKL press release I was very young when I started playing Kabaddi A tournament was organised in our village and they were giving away jerseys So I decided to play thats how my journey in Kabaddi beganComing from a middleclass family Sethpal faced initial resistance from his father who prioritised his education Even my father wanted me to focus on studies he said But his mother became his pillar of support She believed that even if I didnt make it big at least I would have a fallback option in lifeA crucial turning point came through Nitin Rawal who became his mentor and support system Nitin himself is considered among the best defenders in the PKL having scored 167 points in his 103 matches in the league He is also a national hero winning the Asian Games gold with India in 2023Nitin Rawal has supported me throughout both financially and emotionally He helped my brother and me reach where we are today Sethpal shares gratefully Rawals intervention was instrumental challenging his school to give him a chance If you like his performance keep him If not you can deny himHis breakthrough came with two gold medals in Junior Nationals Looking at our team it seemed unlikely that we would win a medal he remembers We had only two raiders along with five defenders I wasnt a main player I filled in at different positions Against all odds they secured the gold medal for Sports Authority of IndiaThe Pro Kabaddi League transformed his life completely Signed by U Mumba in 2019 his first significant moment was tackling league superstar Pawan Sehrawat I was thrilled I had tackled the leagues top raider This performance caught his teams attention and marked the beginning of his professional journeyWhen Haryana Steelers secured him for INR 407 lakhs Sethpal proved himself as a top defender The PKL Season 11 victory was the culmination of his dreams Winning the title was a dream come true Being from Haryana it meant so much to us our team had legends like Surender Nada yet we had never won the PKL title beforeSethpal won 73 tackle points in 24 games including 4 High 5s to his name in his titlewinning season 11 In his 80 matches in the PKL he has won 196 tackle points including 30 Super Tackles and 13 High 5sThe league has dramatically changed his life prospects Coming from a middleclass family the things I own now were once just dreams he reflects From staying in luxurious hotels to earning a good income PKL has given me opportunities beyond imagination I never even dreamt of this kind of moneyLooking to the future his ambitions remain highGoing forward I want to play for India as I have now competed in the Senior Nationals I want to keep playing for as long as possible and leave a legacy in Kabaddi I believe Ive been giving strong performances for the team and they trust me he concludes I aim to play for many more years and make my country proud