"I won today, but he would be happy"- Rakesh Kumar talks about clash against close friend Anup Kumar in Pro Kabaddi 2022

Fans witnessed a battle between Rakesh Kumar's Haryana Steelers and Anup Kumar's Puneri Paltan in Pro Kabaddi 2022 earlier tonight.

Both players are former Indian Kabaddi team captains. They are now retired and have taken up coaching roles in PKL franchises.

Rakesh's Steelers got the better of Anup's Paltan in their first meeting of the season. A total of 14 tackle points from the duo of Mohit and Jaideep helped the Haryana-based franchise win the match by 37-30.

Commenting on his friendship with Puneri Paltan coach Anup Kumar, Haryana Steelers coach Rakesh Kumar said at the post-match press conference:

"We are good friends. The whole world knows that. You can also say that we are like family members, but we need to be professional while playing the game. In the matches, wins and losses only matter. Yes, he was a good player. He has done well as a coach.

"I had one thing in mind that whoever wins today, there will be no loser. Our friendship will win. I won today, but he would be happy. Even if he had won, I would have been happy. Our friendship emerged victorious."

Catch the latest live pkl score here on Sportskeeda!

Rakesh Kumar and Anup Kumar played against each other multiple times in Pro Kabaddi League

While Anup Kumar and Rakesh Kumar played together for the Indian Kabaddi team, they went head-to-head multiple times in the PKL.

Anup was the captain of U Mumba for multiple seasons, while Rakesh led the Patna Pirates in the initial seasons.

The legendary duo also played together for U Mumba in the third season. However, they could not win the title that season.

Rakesh played a season for the Telugu Titans and retired soon after. Meanwhile, Anup retired after playing in season six for the Jaipur Pink Panthers.

It will be interesting to see which franchise comes out on top when the two Pro Kabaddi teams meet again in the second round of PKL 8.