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What's the story?
India won the Asian Kabaddi Championships 2017 after defeating Pakistan in the final on Sunday and leading the Indian side in the competition was raider Ajay Thakur, for whom it was the first time captaining the national team.
Addressing his fans through an Instagram live video after his team's win, Thakur lamented the lack of coverage for the event back home in India. He said, "We got to know that there is no telecast of the tournament in India and that you (fans) are unable to watch the matches."
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"It as a very sad thing that there is no coverage of the Championships and we were very disappointed when we got to know this fact," he added. "However, we are trying to make as many videos as possible and take pictures so that we can share them with you," stated Thakur.
In case you didn't know
India were crowned Asian champions as they swept the tournament by winning six matches in a row. They defeated Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan and Japan in the group stages before wins against Korea and Pakistan in the semifinal and final respectively ensured the gold medal.
However, the only blot on the emphatic win was the lack of coverage in India as the final match was not telecast live anywhere except on the Iran Kabaddi Federation's Instagram account.
The heart of the matter
In the video, Thakur also spoke about how nervous he was when he was made captain and how he had the honour of playing under the likes of Anup Kumar and Rakesh Kumar.
He heaped praise on his teammates, stating that how it was a very young team and still played with great maturity. He also reserved a word for the raiding duo of Maninder Singh and Pardeep Narwal, who were excellent over the course of the tournament.
What's next?
The members of the Indian side are expected to be in action next at the Senior National Championships in December.
Author's take
The issue raised by Thakur is an important one. The absence of telecast of a major continental event, especially after a three-month-long domestic league is certainly disappointing.
