Kabaddi is a contact sport played between two teams of seven players each. During the game, a lone member of one team ("raider") enters the opposite half of the court and tries to tag members of the opposition team ("defenders") without being tackled. In a single raid, often lasting a maximum 30 seconds, points are awarded for successful tags if the raider does not get out, while defenders earn a point if the raider is tackled, goes out of bounds or timed out. Tagged or tackled players temporarily step out of the game and can be revived when the team scores points. Raids alternate between the teams throughout the game.
There are several variations of the sport though the two major forms are the standard style, played on a rectangular court, that is part of international competitions such as the Asian Games, and circle style (also called Punjabi kabaddi), played on a circular field.
Though it is more popular in Asia, it is played in several countries around the world. Although evidence of a sport similar to modern kabaddi can be found in ancient Indian texts, the rules of modern kabaddi were formalised in the 1920s in India and the game was popularised as a competitive sport in the late 20th century.
It is included among the traditional games of South Asia and is the national sport of Bangladesh, the state sport of several Indian states and is listed as an intangible cultural heritage by the Malaysian government.
Etymology and names
The origin of the word "kabaddi" is unclear. An often cited etymology is from the Tamil words "kai" and "pidi" meaning "to hold hands". Other cited etymologies include those from Kannada, Hindi, Bengali and Punjabi. According to medical anthropolgist Joseph Alter:
The sport is known by various names in different parts of the Indian subcontinent, such as: chedugudu in Andhra Pradesh, ha-du-du in Bengal, bhavatik in Maldives, jabarjang in Punjab, gudu in Sri Lanka, sadugudu in Tamil Nadu, and hu-tu-tu in West India. In Thailand it is known as theechub.
Multiple traditional names exist for the sport throughout Iran, including zo in Khorasan, Golestan and Mazandaran; shirin-dodo in Gilan; ti-ti in Khuzestan; and kabaddi in Sistan and Baluchestan.
History Ancient era
The exact origin of the sport has been unclear, though it probably originated in the Indian subcontinent, about four thousand years ago. It may have originated in prehistoric times, when humans formed groups to protect themselves from predators and to hunt animals or perhaps as a way of demonstrating bravery. According to Ronojoy Sen kabaddi originated during the Vedic period (between 1500 and 500 BCE). Some form of the sport is claimed to have been played for physical exercise in the vedic schools of ancient India.
In the ancient Indian epic Mahabharata, during the Kurukshetra War, Abhimanyu raids the Kaurava army and gets trapped in the Chakravyuha formation, which exhibits similarities to the modern day kabaddi. Krishna and Siddhartha Gautama are said to have played an ancient form of the sport.
There are also accounts of kabaddi having originated in ancient Tamilakam, or in Persia.
Modern era
Modern kabaddi originated in the 1920s in India. The first set of rules were formulated in present-day Maharashtra in 1921, and were modified further in 1923, when the first national tournament was held in Baroda. It was a demonstration sport at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin where it was demonstrated by an Amravati-based sports organisation. In 1938, it was included as part of the All-India Olympic Championships (later National Games) held in Calcutta. The All India Kabaddi Federation was established in 1950 and started organizing annual national tournaments for men from 1952 and women from 1955. Kabaddi was a demonstration sport in the inaugural edition of the Asian Games held in New Delhi in 1951. The popularity of the sport grew in the later 20th century in South Asia.
The Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India was formed in 1972 and kabaddi was designated the national sport of Bangladesh in the same year. With the establishment of the Asian Amateur Kabaddi Federation, the first Asian Kabaddi Championship was organized in 1980. The sport was played at the South Asian Games held at Dhaka later that year. It became part of the official programme at the 1990 Asian Games held in Beijing. These developments helped to formalise the sport, as it began to be played on synthetic surfaces, having been traditionally played on muddy surfaces. The International Kabaddi Federation as established in 2004, and organised the first Kabaddi World Cup later that year in Mumbai. The first Asian Women's Kabaddi Championship was held at Hyderabad in 2005, and the women's event was included in the Asian Games programme for the first time in 2010. In the 2010s, several franchise based kabaddi leagues such as the Pro Kabaddi League began to be organized, which led to increased interest in the sport.
Gameplay and rules Play area Though kabaddi was traditionally played outdoors, competitive matches are held on padded mats. The dimensions of the court vary according to gender and age groups. It measures in the case of men and for women. Sub-junior level (under 16) games are played on courts. The court is bound by four outher boundary lines and is divided into two equal halves by a midline. The lines are stipulated to be thick. A clearance area is left on all sides of the playing area. On both the side boundaries, a area is designated as lobby area, which forms part of the playing field. On each side, there are two parallel lines drawn on the far end of the court. The baulk line is located about from the midline for men and for women, and the bonus line lies beyond the baulk line.
Players, equipment, and officials
In the standard version of kabaddi, two teams of seven members each compete against each other. The teams also have three to five substitute players. The teams occupy opposing sides on a field, and at any given time, one member of a team ("raider") ventures into the opposition half to take on a team of "defenders". Players are required to wear a shirt, shorts, and footwear. The players have unique numbers that are mentioned on both the back and front of the shirt. Players are barred from having long nails or wearing any ornaments during the match. Players are not allowed to apply any slippery substances such as oil on their bodies.
Five substitutions are allowed during the match generally effected during time outs. The same player can be re-substituted any number of times within the overall limit. Players who are suspended from the match or not on court cannot be substituted for another player.
The match officials include a referee, two umpires, one scorer, and two assistant scorers. The officials have a stipulated dress code of shirts, black trousers, and white shoes, and carries other necessary equipment like whistle, cards, and timers. The game is officiated by the two umpires, whose decision may be overruled by the referee is special circumstances. The referee is also responsible for the coin toss at the start of the match, time keeping, and announcement of substitution of players. The scorer records the score, and informs the referee and the umpires on the same. The assistant scorers are responsible for tracking whether any player goes out of the field of play and the order in which the players get on to the mat after being outed.
Gameplay
During each play, known as a "raid", a player from the attacking side ("raider"), runs into the opposing team's side of the court. During a raid, the raider attempts to tag as many defenders as possible and tries to return to their half of the field without being tackled. A point is scored for each defender tagged; tags can be made with any part of the raider's body by touching any part of the defender's body. If the raider steps beyond the bonus line marked in the defending team's territory when there are six or more opposing players, they earn an additional point known as a bonus point. The bonus point is only scored if the raider's trailing foot is in the air while they step over the line. While raiding, the raider must chant kabaddi (known as "cant"), confirming to referees that the raid is completed on a single breath without inhaling.
If the raider is successfully stopped ("tackle") or pushed out of the playing area by the defenders, the raider is out and the opposing team earns a point instead. The raider is also declared out if there is no contact with any of the defenders and the baulk line is not crossed. Any of the defenders going outside the playing area during a raid are declared out and withdrawn immediately. If the raider fails to cant or if more than one raider enter the opposition half, a technical foul is declared and the opposition is awarded a point. If an outed player is involved in a tackle, or if the defenders pull the hair or clothing of the raider, it is considered invalid, and the raider is not declared out. When the raider makes contact with any of the opposition players, the lobby areas on either side comes into play, which can be used by the raider or the defending team.
The raider and the defenders, if declared out, are taken out of the gameplay. They can be revived for each point a team scores from subsequent gameplay in the same order they went out. However, bonus or penalty points do not revive players. If a team gets all seven players on the opposing team out ("All Out"), they earn two additional points and then all the seven opposition players re-enter in the game.
Duration and tie-breaking methods A typical match consists of two halves with a five minute interval in between. Each half consists of 20 minutes in case of men and 15 minutes for women. The teams switch sides on the court at half time. The match time clock ticks only when the gameplay is on. Teams can take two 30-minute time outs in each half, which can be requested by the manager of any of the players to the match officials.
The team with the most points at the end of the match is declared the winner. If the teams are tied, points can be split during group stage matches, or a tie-breaker can be held to determine the winner. In the tie-breaker, both the teams are allowed to have all seven players on the mat at all the times. The baulk line is considered as both baulk and bonus line for scoring purposes. Five raids are allowed for each team, with a different raider nominated for each of the raids. If the score remains level after the five raids, a coin toss is made to determine which team gets a chance to get on a golden raid. The team which scores the first point during the golden raid wins the match.
Misconduct
Players are cautioned with a green card, suspended temporarily using a yellow card, and dismissed from the game with a red card. Cards can be issues to the players on field, those on the bench, or the officials of the team. The referee or the umpires can issue verbal warnings before issuing cards. A foul occurs when a violation is committed. Violations include teams taking more than five seconds to start a raid, a member of the opposition preventing the raider from starting a raid, a raider covering the mouth, a defender choking the raider or using prohibited or violent methods to tackle the raider. Remonstrating with the officials, using bad language against the officials or other players, making obscene gestures or pointing fingers are considered offences. Managers or officials can be cautioned if they try to give instructions during the gameplay or confront the officials in an aggressive manner.