In a first, new Kabaddi league to share profit with players - Virender Sehwag unveils logo

The dates for the first edition of the Indo International Premier Kabaddi League (IPKL) were announced on Wednesday and its logo was also shared by former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag. Organised by the National Kabaddi Federation of India, IPKL would be the first league that will share a part of its profit with players, apart from the assured salaries and prize money. The logo was unveiled at a ceremony in Delhi where Sehwag expressed his disappointment over India's loss in Kabaddi at the Jakarta Palembang 2018 Asian Games.

"It pained the whole nation including myself to see India lose their golden stranglehold in the Kabaddi competition at the Jakarta Palembang 2018 Asian Games," Sehwag said, refering to India's loss to Iran."Kabaddi is a pride of the country including many such indigenous sports which all of us at some point grew up playing. When the organizers of IPKL came to me, I felt their ideas and passion would certainly help us regain our place at the pedestal of Asian and world Kabaddi. I wish the IPKL and all players all the very best in this new journey," he added. 

The tournament will be held at four different three venues - Pune, Mysore and Bengaluru - from May 13 to June 4. A total of 44 matches will be played in the first season between eight teams and a total of 160 players, including 16 foreign signings. All players were selected post rigorous selection trials conducted throughout the country which were open to all.

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The opening phase of the tournament will feature 20 games and will be played at Pune`s Balewadi stadium between May 13 and 21, while 17 games of the second phase will take place in Mysore`s Chamundai Vihar stadium from May 24 to May 29. The final phase will be held in Bengaluru beginning June 1 and will have 7 games, with the grand finale scheduled at the Kanteerava stadium on June 4.

Ravi Kiran, Director, IPKL, said, "This is an effort towards creating a robust and transparent system for growing the sport of Kabaddi, which we all love so much around the country. This league is a revolutionary step towards increasing and strengthening the reach of this sport. For the first time ever players have been made stakeholders in the game through our revenue sharing formula. This ensures the primacy of player`s interests."

The eight teams taking part in the tournament are: the Bangalore Rhinos, the Chennai Challengers, Diler Delhi, Telegu Bulls, Pune Pride, Haryana Heroes, Mumbai Che Raje and Rajasthan Rajputs. Each team will have marquee players and will include five raiders, seven defenders and three all-rounders besides two foreign signings.