Pro Kabaddi League 2017, Season 5: "Picked up kabaddi skills from YouTube videos," reveals Pune star Sandeep Narwal

Sandeep Narwal with his trademark celebratory jump

What’s the story?

Sandeep Narwal, the former Telugu Titans and Patna Pirates star, will turn out for the Puneri Paltan for the upcoming fifth season of the Pro Kabaddi League. The 24-year-old is one of the best all-rounders in the business and was bought by the Paltan for Rs 66 lakhs in the recently-concluded auction.

In an interview with the Rajasthan Patrika, he revealed that he learnt the tricks of the trade by emulating senior players and watching their videos after downloading them from YouTube. He said, "In our village Kathura in Haryana, there’s only one sport – kabaddi. Everyone there, young or old, plays kabaddi there and since I had been watching it so closely while growing up, I also got hooked to it.”

“When the Pro Kabaddi League started, I wanted to join a team. I started practicing and improving my fitness by playing with the senior players in the village. But I knew that to reach the top level, I would need to hone my technical skills as well,” he added.

“The moves the senior players did on the mat, I tried to emulate them. For this, I would download videos from YouTube and watch them to learn. Our family’s economic situation was not very good, but it was still not an obstacle,” revealed Narwal. “Thankfully, my hard work and dedication paid off and I was chosen by the Patna Pirates in the first season.”

Related: Puneri Paltan team players for Pro Kabaddi 2017, Season 5

In case you didn’t know

Sandeep Narwal has been one of the stand-out performers in the Pro Kabaddi League over its last four seasons. A valuable asset in both defense and attack, he has amassed mind-boggling numbers.

In 62 matches, he has 171 raid points, which includes a solitary Super 10 as well. At an average of 2.60 per match, he has a whopping 161 tackle points that includes 13 High 5s. He won the Pro Kabaddi title with the Patna Pirates in Season 3, where he was also adjudged the Best Defender over the course of the season.

The heart of the matter

Sandeep has gone from strength-to-strength and has become the most reliable and powerful defenders in the world. At just 23 years of age, he was picked for the Indian national team, with whom he won gold medals at the South Asian Games and Kabaddi World Cup last year.

What’s next?

He will now be a vital cog in the Pune side for the new season of the Pro Kabaddi League. His team is a strong contender for the title – with the likes of Deepak Hooda, Dharmaraj Cheralathan, Rajesh Mondal and Sandeep himself in its ranks.

Author’s take

Sandeep’s story is an inspiring one and it shows that one can achieve great heights with dedication and hard work.