The second season of Ultimate Kho Kho saw 148 players from different parts of the country in the mix, divided into six teams. However, one state has emerged head and shoulders above the rest in its contribution to the talent pool - Maharashtra.
Sixty-four players are from Maharashtra, of which 20 are from Kolhapur, with the combined set comprising 44 per cent of the total player pool.
What makes the state stand out from the rest of the pack?
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While one school of thought believes kho kho has been around as early as the time period of the Mahabharata, more recent records trace the origin of the sport in its current form to Pune. The first kho kho tournaments were conducted in 1914, and the first national championship was held in 1959 in Vijayawada by the of the Kho Kho Federation of India (KKFI), which was established in 1955.
UKK CEO Tenzing Niyogi travelled to Ichalkaranji in Kolhapur district to experience the sport firsthand when the idea of a league was still in the nascent stages.
“Ichalkaranji is the hub of kho kho in India. Tens of thousands of people had come to support their team, and the atmosphere was electrifying. That’s when I thought, ‘If this was packaged in the right fashion for television, then maybe we are onto a success story’,” Niyogi told The Hindu.
Mumbai Khiladis coach Vikas Suryavanshi. | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
Maharashtra is the third largest state in the country in terms of surface area and among the most populous ones too. Naturally, that seeps into the way the sport is organised too. Within the state, there are three kho kho associations through which the sport is governed - the Maharashtra Kho Kho Association, the Kolhapur Kho Kho Association, and the Vidarbha Kho Kho Association. Out of the 36 districts in the state, 24 are represented by Maharashtra, one by Vidarbha and the remaining 11 come under Kolhapur.
The three-way split might make one wonder if too many cooks will spoil the broth, but Mumbai Khiladi’s head coach Vikas Suryavanshi thinks otherwise.
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“The more, the merrier. I say this because three associations mean more opportunities for players all over the state,” Suryavanshi, who is also the head coach of the national men’s kho kho team, said.
“I’m not saying that other states have less exposure to kho kho, but Maharashtra certainly has the edge over them considering the fact that we have been playing it for more than 70 years,” he added.
A thriving club culture complements this elaborate setup. Apart from school and college teams, there are numerous kho kho clubs, and Durvesh Salunke of the Chennai Quick Guns -- one of the semifinalists of this edition -- is a product of one of them.
“Our club, Mumbai-based Shri Sahyadri Sangh, houses close to 150 to 200 players and caters to almost all age groups starting from under 14s to senior level kho kho. We practise on all seven days of the week and coaching is free of cost here,” Salunke, who is among the best Wazirs this season, said.
Sheer number is not the only factor setting Maharashtra apart from the rest. A superior technical repertoire also makes these players some of the best in the business, making them the stars of the league.
This includes Durvesh’s teammate and fan-favourite Ramji Kashyap, Telugu Yoddhas skipper Pratik Waikar, Mumbai Khiladis’ captain Aniket Pote, and Rajasthan Warriors’ defender Vrushab Wagh to name a few.
Moreover, captains of all six teams-- Akshay Sandeep (Gujarat Giants), Amit Patil (Chennai Quick Guns), Waikar (Telugu Yoddhas), Dipesh More (Odisha Juggernauts), Aniket Pote (Mumbai Khiladis), Majahar Jamadar (Rajasthan Warriors) all hail from Maharashtra.
While the introduction of UKK has given Maharashtra a bigger platform to best the state has to offer, it is safe to say that other states will hope to catch up sooner than later.
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