Kabaddi Feature: How Iran became as good as India in international Kabaddi

The game was introduced in the Asian Games in 1990, and since then, India has won all finals except the last one in 2018, which Iran won. 

Many experts saw it coming as Iran finished second in 2010 and 2014, and their prowess in Kabaddi increased exponentially. 

Moreover, the Pro Kabaddi league in the world, the Pro Kabaddi League, is also seeing many Iranian players with great strength and talent. Many are making more money in the league than Indian players. 

While everyone saw the country rising swiftly in the game, no one knew the history of the game in their country. 

In an interview conducted by Scroll. in with Fazel Atrachali, the Iranian player discussed how the game became popular in Iran. 

Atrachali said that the sport was never played at the competitive level in Iran before the federation was formed in 1996. 

Before the formation of the federation, the sport was only played as a fun game among young kids. Though he said that the game is many centuries old in the country, it was never played as a serious sport as it was in India. 

While in India, it's called Kabaddi, in Iran, the raider was supposed to repeat the phrase "zouuu zouuu" while making the raids. 

Another surprising fact that Atrachali revealed during his interview with Scroll is that he was initially a wrestler. 

He revealed that when the federation was formed in 1996, it started searching for good wrestlers and turned them into Kabaddi players. 

"Before the federation was formed, there were no teams and no competitions," said Fazel Atrachali. "It was not played in mud, but on a floor. You also did not have to chant 'kabaddi kabaddi' during a raid. You had to say 'zouuuu zouuuu' and if you stop then you are out."

Because Kabaddi also needed physical strength and many raiding and defending techniques were similar to wrestling, the wrestlers loved to take up the sport. 

"Because kabaddi has moves like ankle hold and thigh hold, it's a bit similar to wrestling and that's what appealed to me," said Atrachali. "I came to Kabaddi because it has a lot of fighting and hitting. I like it," he added. 

It is commendable how Iran has come a long way in such a brief period. It not only became the first country to defeat the Indian teams (both men and women) in Asian Games but also made a strong impression on the Indian audience in the Pro Kabaddi League.