Vishal Bharadwaj is chasing a dream — to be a winning team member of the ProKabaddi League. The talented 20-year-old, now donning Telugu Titans colours, said the day was not far off for him to realise his goal, given the way his team was playing this season.
In an exclusive chat with Sportstar , Vishal, who the critics say has shored up Titans’ defence, felt that the mantra of success for his team was the emphasis on peak fitness, a perfect blend of defence and aggression, and youthful exuberance and experience.
No fatigue
“I don’t think any player (of any team) can complain of fatigue as the season gets into the knockout phase.
“All the coaches have been working on every aspect, including mental toughness, to ensure that they are physically ready for the challenges,” Vishal said in a telephonic chat.
“Well, the sport, thanks to PKL, has made every player of some repute a hard-core pro. Compared to previous editions, fitness has been the most important aspect, besides skill and execution of game-plan,” said Vishal.
Need to raise the bar
“It will be difficult as always in such a high-profile league to pick one or two teams as major hurdles. All are on par with each other in terms of depth and quality. So, every team has to keep raising the bar to stay in the hunt for the title,” said Vishal, who was the third best defender in PKL-5 with his acknowledged ‘ankle-holds’.
“Honestly, we are not only enjoying playing in the PKL but also the media glare and the fan following,” he said.
Vishal doesn’t believe that the presence of foreign players has actually dented India’s chances of winning more gold in international competitions. “I look at it this way. The Indians too will be able to study these players’ strengths and weaknesses when we represent the nation,” he felt.
“Apart from winning the PKL title, I dream of winning the World Cup and the Asian Games gold in the future,” he said.
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