Daijiworld Media Network - Dubai (SP)
Dubai, Apr 4: Dubai Bhatkal community succeeded in holding a Kabaddi tournament in the foreign soil successfully, at a time when a feeling is sinking everywhere that the traditional rural sports of India are being neglected by everyone.
A state-level Kabaddi tournament was organized in the afternoon of Friday April 3 between 3.00 and 9.30 pm at the Sudanese Club stadium here. The competitive and skillful way in which the players played, surprised those who expected to see an indifferent show. The nine teams vied with each other to excel in Kabaddi and fought tooth and nail to annex the trophy.
Bhatkal Super, Billavas Dubai, Mangalore Shilpi, Bhatkal Raiders, Karnataka Sangha Sharjah, Mogaveera UAE, Al Navayat Abu Dhabi, Antek Ajman and Bhatkal Challengers were the nine teams seen in action during the tournament.
The tournament was given a divine beginning with the recital of verses from Quran by Tajammul Hussain. The initial matches were held in two courts. In the first match, Karnataka Sangh defeated Mogaveera UAE with a margin of 25-13 while Mangalore Shilpi team, winners of the previous edition of the tournament, subdued Bhatkal Raiders by 42-16. Al Navayat Abu Dhabi succeeded in dousing the spirited challenge of Ajman team by 19-13, with the fourth match going Bhatkal Super team's way, which easily overcame the challenge of Billavas Dubai team with a margin of 37-16. In the fifth match, Al Navayat Abu Dhabi accepted defeat in the hands of Bhatkal Challengers by 29-10. Bhatkal Challengers identified the shortcoming of its opponents and scored an easy victory by capitalizing on the weaknesses of the opposing team.
In the semi-finals, Mangalore Shilpi scored a facile victory over Bhatkal Super team by scoring 60 points as against the 14 earned by the opponent team. Bhatkal Super team had to taste utter defeat because of absence of proper leadership, mounted frustrations because of increasing margin and the aggressive raids launched by their opponents.
In the second semi-final, Bhatkal Challengers defeated Karnataka Sangh Sharjah by 50-22. Abu Mohammed of the winning team crafted victory for his team with some spectacular catches. The fact that the Sharjah team played complacently for a while in the middle and injury suffered by an important player became their undoing.
The final match of the tournament proved to be a breath-taking encounter, with both Mangalore Shilpi and Bhatkal Challengers fighting for one-upmanship. Gopinath, captain, Hasanabba and Jacob, team members of Mangalore Shilpi, are national-level players. Bhatkal Challengers somehow earned a victory by a single point, with the final score reading 27-26. The last point came at the last minute.
The elated spectators rushed to the ground and gave some anxious moments to the organizers. Senior members of the local Bhatkal Navayat community, Mohammed Ghouse Khaleefa, secretary Abdurrahman Siddiqui, Khaleej Council general secretary S J Syed Hashim etc were present.
Bhatkal Anjuman Boys High School physical education teacher Nijam Mammigatte functioned as referee in the entire tournament and ensured that the tournament was devoid of any controversial decisions. Bhatkal Community sports representative Mohammed Yasir Kashimji, Anjuman Hami Muslimeen general secretary Jukaku Abdurrahim,. Bhatkal Navayat Community leaders S M Syed Khaleel, Jia Jikaku, Karnataka Sangha Dubai president C R Shetty etc., were present. Sports committee members Shaharyar Kashim, Fayaz Udyavar, Ashraf Siddi Basha etc contributed towards the smooth conduct of the tourament.
Gopinath of Mangalore Shilpi team was adjudged the best all-rounder, while the award for the best catcher went to Fahad Malik of Bhatkal Challengers. Kamar Barmavar of Bhatkal Challengers got the best rider award.