NEWS
Athletes all across the globe have to go through ups and downs in their lives. A sportsperson may have a rough patch in a career because of poor performances or an injury. A true sportsman is the one who tackles these obstacles and comes back a stronger human being than before. In a physical game like Kabaddi, you tend to fall prey to significant injuries. Here is a story of one such athlete by the name Maninder Singh, who went through a major injury during his prime form and wasn’t able to play the sport for three long years. However, Maninder Singh came back as a better raider than what he was initially.
Details | |
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Full Name | Maninder Singh |
Age | 29 |
Sport Category | Kabaddi |
Date of Birth | 1 January 1990 |
Hometown | Jalandhar, Punjab |
Coach | Jagdish Kumble, Kasinatha Baskaran |
Teams Played for | India, Jaipur Pink Panthers, Bengal Warriors, Punjab Police |
Playing Position | Raider |
Maninder Singh was born on 31st January 1990 in Jalandhar, Punjab. His father was a Zamindar and was a big fan of Kabaddi. Maninder started playing Kabaddi in the childhood itself. He represented his school team at inter-school level. Everyone in his school was fascinated by his attacking performance, and hence he gained a lot of popularity in a lot of schools in Jalandhar.
Maninder was selected in the U-19 team of his university. In one of the tournaments, he outperformed his opponents and was one of the most successful raiders in the competition. His attacking style of raiding got acknowledged by a famous Kabaddi coach in Jalandhar by the name Hanumat Singh. Hanumat offered Maninder to train professionally and chose Kabaddi as a career as he had all the potential of representing the Indian team. Maninder Singh started playing Club Kabaddi in Jalandhar and impressed everyone with his skills.
Maninder (top row, 2nd from left) beside his coach K Baskaran (top row, 3rd from left) after lifting the PKL Trophy for Jaipur Pink Panthers in 2014
Hanumat Singh was a very close friend of a top-rated former Indian Kabaddi player. He had mentored the Thailand National Team in 2010 and was going to be the head coach of the PKL franchise Jaipur Pink Panthers in the inaugural season. Hanumat introduced K Baskaran to Maninder in one of the tournaments. Baskaran was so impressed by Maninder that he picked him up in the Pink Panthers’ in the 2014 Auction and wasn’t disappointed at all with his decision.
Maninder was the most successful raider for Jaipur Pink Panthers in 2014 as he managed to scalp 130 points in just 16 appearances at a raid success percentage of 74.28%! Overall, he was the 3rd best raider in the league in terms of raid points earned. His brilliance on the court helped Jaipur lift their first Pro Kabaddi League title in the same year.
The most tough phase for a sportsman is when he is not able to play the game because of an injury. It can make or break you mentally. Although Jaipur won the final match against U-Mumba in 2014, Maninder fell prey to a severe back injury the same game. The damage was so severe that his doctors told him to discontinue Kabaddi for three years. However, Maninder faced this phase of life positively, performed well in the domestic circuit and returned to PKL in season 5 with the same flair and charisma.
In the 2017 season, Bengal Warriors picked Maninder Singh with the hope that he’ll bring similar energy to the team as he did in the maiden season for Pink Panthers. Maninder Singh didn’t disappoint his franchise and became the leading raider for Bengal Warriors in season 6 with 206 points to his name. Currently, he is the skipper of Bengal Warriors and would love to lift the trophy again in 2019.
Seasons Played | Matches Played | Raid Points | Super Raids | Tackle Points | Super Tackle | Total Points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 16 | 130 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 137 |
5 | 21 | 190 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 192 |
6 | 22 | 206 | 1 | 0 | – | 206 |
Total | 59 | 526 | 10 | 9 | 1 | 535 |
Maninder Singh (3rd from left, bottom row) celebrating India’s gold medal victory against Pakistan in the 2017 Asian Kabaddi Championship in Gorgan, Iran
In 2017, Maninder’s dream of representing the Indian Kabaddi squad was fulfilled as he got the opportunity to represent India in the 2017 Asian Kabaddi Championship. India went on to win the gold medal in that tournament.
Running hand touch is Mani’s signature move
Like mentioned earlier, Mani has always had a very attacking approach towards the game. His signature move while raiding is the running hand touch, a move in which a raider uses his pace and agility and rushes towards the defender for a quick touch to his surprise. Maninder has very successfully been able to snatch points away from the opponents in this fashion.
Maninder Singh and Ran Singh have been best friends since their inclusion in the Punjab Kabaddi Team in their early days (credits: PKL)
Maninder Singh’s income from PKL stands at close to ₹ 1.60 crores. Pink Panthers signed him in the inaugural season. After a 3 year sabbatical, Singh then moved to Bengal Warriors in 2017 for a fee of around ₹ 45.60 lakhs. The deal was then improved to ₹ 57 lakhs per season for 2018 and 2019.
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