Kabaddi is a popular contact sport in South Asia that first originated in ancient India. It is played throughout the country and is the official game in the states of Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Telangana and Maharashtra. Outside of India it is a popular activity in Iran, it is the national game of Bangladesh and it is also one of the national sports of Nepal where it is taught in all public schools. Kabaddi is also popular in other parts of the world where there are Indian and Pakistani communities, such as in the United Kingdom, where the sport is governed by the England Kabaddi UK Federation.
There are many regional variations of the game of kabaddi in India, including sanjeevani, gaminee, punjabi and amar versions, all of which have slightly different interpretations of the game and its rules. There are also other games very similar to kabaddi both in India and in other countries that may not be pure kabaddi, they are very related. these include the game of hadudu played in bangladesh, baibalaa in the maldives, and hututu in maharashtra.
The governing body for kabaddi is the International Kabaddi Federation and consists of over 30 national associations and oversees the game and its rules worldwide.
object of the game
The general objective of the game is simply to score more points than the opposing team within the allotted time. to do this, each team must try to score points by both attacking and defending. when attacking, the offensive team sends an attacker into the opposition half who must tag one or more members of the opposition to score a point. when defending, the goal is to capture the assailant by knocking him to the ground or simply preventing him from returning to his own half before he runs out of breath.
players & team
kabaddi is played by two teams consisting of twelve players each. however, only seven players per team are allowed on the field of play at any given time. the kabaddi playing surface measures 13m x 10m and is separated into two halves by a white line, with one team occupying each half. can be played on a wide variety of surfaces, from a dedicated clay court to free ground where a playing surface has been marked.
Unlike so many other popular sports and games, kabaddi is a game that doesn’t really need any special equipment, clothing or accessories, ensuring that it is open to all.
score
Kabaddi punctuation is relatively straightforward. teams score one point for each opponent they take out of the game. putting out an opponent (and thus scoring a point) is done in different ways. when he attacks, this is done by the assailant touching the opposition members, taking them out. when defending, it is done by preventing the assailant from returning to his own half.
Bonus points are also available in kabaddi. the raider can earn an extra point by successfully touching the bonus line in the opposition’s half. Three bonus points are available to a team when all of their opponents are declared out, and one point is also available if any part of an opposing team member’s body goes out of bounds.
win the game
At the end of the match, the team with the most points is declared the winner. if at the end of the game both teams have the same number of points, then the game will be considered a tie.
kabaddi rules
- Each team will consist of no more than 12 players and only 7 will take the field at any one time.
- Due to the physical nature of kabaddi, matches are graded by age and weight. categories.
- there are six officials who look after each kabaddi match. the referees are composed of a referee, a scorer, two assistant scorers and two referees.
- the duration of the game is two halves of 20 minutes with a half-time break of 5 minutes.
- At the beginning of a kabaddi match, a coin is tossed and the winner has the choice of having the first raid or not. in the second half of the match, the team that did not raid first will start the second half with a raid.
- To earn a point by raiding, the attacker must breathe and run into the opposition half. and tag one or more members of the opposing team and then return to their own half of the field before inhaling again.
- To show that another breath has not been taken, the rider must continue to repeatedly shout the word ‘ kabaddi’. failing to do this, even for a moment, means the rider must return to their own side of the court with no points and the opposing team receives one point for a successful defensive play.
- the team that is being assaulted is defending, and players must prevent the assailants from touching them and coming back down the midline. while on defense, a team can score a point by successfully preventing the attacker from returning to their own half after touching it. assailants can only be grabbed by limbs or torso, not by hair, clothing, or anything else, and defenders cannot cross the center line.
- each team will take turns attacking and defending . after half time, the two teams change sides of the court and the team that defended first in the first half starts the second half by attacking.
- the game continues in this way until time runs out, the team with the most points at the end of the match is declared the winner.