NEW YEAR GREETINGS 2009

The KAKL wishes all our friends in the kabaddi family

a Happy and Prosperous New Year!

IIKC report on Kosmo

More scenes from IIKC 2008

Putrajaya players waiting for instruction from the match officials


Deputy organising chairman Narayanasamy presented the Best Raider award to Colombo's Lakmini


DSP Raj presenting the third place trophy to the Colombo captain


All India Circle Kabaddi Federation secretary Ved Sharma presenting the medal to a Delhi player


Brigadier Mahinda Ambanpola presenting the Colombo captain the trophy for second placing


Triconmalee missed their flight and finished third


Kuala Lumpur girls learned from the experience


Some of the children who attended the kabaddi coaching clinic


Part of the spectators included trainees from the Police

Kuala Lumpur Denied

Siva easily taking a bonus point against the Punjab side


Hosts Kuala Lumpur were denied the men’s title at the inaugural Inter City Kabaddi Championships by a resurgent Punjab side at the Police Depot yesterday.

Kuala Lumpur gave scant respect to the favourites and almost pulled off a stunning upset before losing 61-59 in the closely contested final.

Punjab made it a grand double by also taking the women’s title after an easy win over Colombo in the final.

The match between Kuala Lumpur and Punjab was dominated by strong performances from both sides. But it was KL that dictated the pace for much of the game, leading the first half 38-22 and by as much as seven points at one stage in the second half.

Skipper Siva Krishnan and raider Karthik Bandi played sterling roles for the Kuala Lumpur squad.

Siva picked up two individual awards for his efforts – Top Scorer and Best Player of the tournament.

Punjab’s Vijay Kumar was adjudged as the Best Raider.

Vijay and teammate Jagtat Singh turned out to be the bane for the Kuala Lumpur side in the second half.

Despite the defeat, the host proved beyond doubt that they were now on par with teams from the traditional powerhouses.

Colombo’s KS Meegastanne was given the Best Defence award.

Colombo with several internationals including KPT Thushara, KS Meegastanne, ALM Niswan, EAUK Alwis and KAP Nishantha had to contend for third spot ahead of New Delhi. Delhi conceded a walkover to Colombo in the playoff for third spot, with several of their players being injured.

In the women’s competition, Punjab’s strong defence gave them the edge over Colombo, featuring three players, who had helped Sri Lanka to the silver at the last South Asian Games - UMNWPJM Rathnayake, MMNTK Bandara and SPN Dilhani.

Punjab won the women’s final 24-11. Punjab’s Navneet K took the Best Player and Best Defence awards while another Punjab player Parveen K took the Top Scorer Award.

Colombo’s Lakmali was adjudged as the Best Raider.

Another Sri Lankan side, Triconmalee defeated Kuala Lumpur 87-14 for third place.

More Scenes from the IIKC 2008

IIKC officials at work


Officials from various teams also engrossed in the matches


Technical Delegate L. Anbarasu officiating the match involving Putrajaya


Colombo coach Rohana shouting orders from the bench


Punjab players qualify for the final with a match to spare


Putrajaya players in serious mode during their match against Punjab

Womens finalists settled, three in the running for men

Colombo and Triconmalee teams posing for a group picture before their match

Colombo and Punjab are through to the women's final of the International Inter City Kabaddi Championships with both teams having one match to spare.

The two teams will clash today in their final preliminary round matches and again in the final in the evening.

Triconmalee and hosts Kuala Lumpur will play off for the third place. Triconmalee were unfortunate to have to play two back-to-back matches after arriving late for the tournament. They missed their flight on Thursday and the managers meeting agreed to to reschedule their matches.

In the men's competition, three teams are still in the running to make the final. Punjab, Colombo and Kuala Lumpur can make it to the final based on the results of the final round robin matches.

Punjab can qualify for the final if they beat or draw with Delhi today while Kuala Lumpur can also make it to the final if they beat Putrajaya in their final match.

Colombo will qualify if either Punjab or Kuala Lumpur falter in their final match.


RESULTS
MEN: Colombo beat Putrajaya 68-8, Kuala Lumpur beat Colombo 37-34, Punjab beat Putrajaya 65-52, Kuala Lumpur beat New Delhi 49-29

WOMEN: Punjab beat Triconmalee 50-36, Colombo beat Triconmalee 47-41, Punjab beat Kuala Lumpur 70-19

IIKC 2008 STANDINGS AFTER DAY TWO

IIKC STANDINGS AFTER FIRST DAY

More scenes from IIKC

The match between KL and Colombo


Officials taking their lunchbreak to discuss about the games


Lunch Time for the players


Delhi coach at the opening ceremony

Punjab and Colombo set the pace

Colombo has an easy time against Delhi

KL Players limbering up for their game against Colombo



Punjab and Colombo set the early pace on the opening day of the International Inter City Kabaddi Championships at the Police Depot.

Punjab after being penalised for fielding overweight players in their opening match against Colombo beat hosts Kuala Lumpur by a whisker.

Punjab led by a single point with seconds left in their match against Kuala Lumpur forcing the hosts to go for broke in the defence of Punjab's last raid. However Punjab's raider was able to escape the defence of three KL players to pave the way for his sides 63-59 win.

Earlier the match between Punjab and Colombo was declared a 41-41 tie.

Colombo defeated Delhi in the evening to lead the table on points difference ahead of Punjab.

RESULTS
MEN
PUNJAB 41 COLOMBO 41
DELHI 62 PUTRAJAYA 33
PUNJAB 63 KUALA LUMPUR 59
COLOMBO 36 DELHI 9

WOMEN
COLOMBO 74 KL 14

IIKC officially starts

The Prizes and medals for the IIKC 2008

Players taking their oath during the opening ceremony


Olympic Council of Malaysia secretary Datuk Sieh Kok Chi presenting souvenirs to the Colombo team manager Brigadier Ambanpola.

Pictures from the IIKC

Preparations to spruce up the stadium in full swing


The team managers meeting was a smooth affair


The Sri Lankan coach and players having a discussion


The teams from Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya at the players briefing at the venue


Team players receiving their tracksuits from team manager V. Chandran. With him is assistant team manager M. Narayanasamy.

Revised Schedule

The managers meeting at the venue

There has been a re-schedule of the International Inter City Kabaddi Championships draw as the team from Trinconmalee missed their flight and would arrive late.

The managers meeting decided to accomodate the late entry and this would force Triconmalee to play two back-to back matches on Saturday.


DECEMBER 26, 2008

10.00am Opening Ceremony
11.00 am Men Putrajaya vs New Delhi
12 noon Men Colombo vs Punjab
1.00pm Break
4.00pm Women Colombo vs KL
5.00pm Men Colombo vs New Delhi
6.00pm Men KL vs Punjab

DECEMBER 27, 2008
11.00am Men Punjab vs Putrajaya
12 noon Men Colombo vs KL
1.00pm Break
3.00pm Women Punjab vs KL
4.00pm Men Colombo vs Putrajaya
5.00pm Men KL vs New Delhi
6.00pm Women Colombo vs Triconmalee
7.00pm Women Punjab vs Triconmalee

DECEMBER 28, 2008
10.00am Men New Delhi vs Punjab
11.00am Men KL vs Putrajaya
12.00noon Women vs Punjab Colombo
12.45 pm Women KL vs Triconmalee
2.00pm Special Coaching Clinic
3.15pm W 3-4
4.00pm W Final
5.00pm M 3-4
6.00pm M Final
Closing Ceremony and Prize Presentation

KL and Putrajaya teams Named

The Kabaddi Association of Kuala Lumpur have finalised their teams for the International Inter City Kabaddi Championships.

KUALA LUMPUR
Men Players: Siva Krishnan, Durai Raja Thangaveloo, Logeswaran Nagappan, Vickneswaran Karnasan, Dharmend Panerselvam, Abdul Samad Ismail, Sabaratnam Ponusamy Moorthy, Kartik Bandi, Vimal Pavadai, Vinoth Chandran, Paramasiven Muniandy, Saravanan Kaniappan

Women Players: Kavitha Anbarasu, Shanti Anbarasu, Vishalini Subramaniam, Aswini Subramaniam, Subah Sukumaran, Durga Dewi Loganathan, Jasmine Ragu, Shangari Anbarasu, Pavithra Narayanasamy, Malakodee Muniandy, Jagathiswary Subramaniam, Letchumi B


PUTRAJAYA
Men Players: Satishwaran Ramu, Yogindran Nimbeli, Gartiban Karunanithi, Ganes Prabu Benjamin, Theventhiran Govindarajoo, Nagalingam Thangaveloo, Jegan Selva Dorai, Ananthan Balakrishnan, Govindan Dharmalingam, Sugumaran Balan, Murukayah Subramaniam, Thangavelu Radahkrisnen

Updated list from the other teams

NEW DELHI
Officials: Hans Raj Singh
Men Players: Parwath Amarender Reddy, Hyderboni Chandra Mohan, Gowrireddygari Anath, Syed Ahmed, Goerige Krishnagoud, Guduru Prabhu, Amit Dhama, Deepak Rana, Sandeep Kumar, Harish, Kuldeep


COLOMBO
Officials: Air Cdre KRA Ranasinghe, Brig EMM Ambanpola Usp, Sqn Ldr KKSC Jayathilake, Sqn Ldr PS Warakagoda, Sgt Ashoka HPR, Sgt Gunasekara PLE , Sgt Naidahewa WR
Men Players: Cpl Thushara KPT, Cpl Saman Kumara PL, L/Cpl Gunathilake SPNS, L/Cpl De Silva DPA, L/Cpl Bandara BWINK, Pte Ranjith NPMN, Sgt Meegastanne KS, Sgt Haputhantri RK, Sgt Niswan ALM, Cpl Alwis EAUK, LAC Nishantha KAP
Women Team: L/Cpl Karunanayake, Pte Perera AMK, LAC Jayasekara JMM, LAC Wimalasena MH, LAC Rathnayake UMNWPJM. AC Bandara MMNTK. AC Dilhani SPN, AC Lakmali MM


TRICONMALEE
Officials: B.D.L Kularathana, S.Subani Udawatha, Lakmini Samarasinghe
Women Players: W.Priyanthi Kusumalatha, W.A Dilmi Dilhara, M.D.C .J Wijekoon, N.N.M Wedage, U.B Niroshima, U.J.C Uduwana, H.B.S Fernando, Thamali Hirunika Kapuge, K.D.C.M Basnayake, M.H.C.N Jayathilaka, V.S Priyanka, K.N Dilruckshi

SCHEDULE IIKC 2008

SCHEDULE
DECEMBER 25, 2008
8.30pm: Managers Meeting

DECEMBER 26, 2008
10.00am: Opening Ceremony
11.00 am: Men Putrajaya vs New Delhi
12 noon: Men Colombo vs Sri Nagar
1.00pm: Break
3.00pm: Women Sri Nagar vs Triconmalee
4.00pm: Women Colombo vs KL
5.00pm: Men Colombo vs New Delhi
6.00pm: Men KL vs Sri Nagar


DECEMBER 27, 2008
11.00am: Men Sri Nagar vs Putrajaya
12 noon: Men Colombo vs KL
1.00pm: Break
3.00pm: Women Sri Nagar vs KL
4.00pm: Women Triconmalee vs Colombo
5.00pm: Men Colombo vs Putrajaya
6.00pm: Men KL vs New Delhi

DECEMBER 28, 2008
10.00am: Men New Delhi vs Sri Nagar
11.00am: Men KL vs Putrajaya
12.00noon: Women Sri Nagar vs Colombo
12.45pm: Women KL vs Triconmalee
2.00pm: Special Coaching Clinic
3.15pm: Women 3-4
4.00pm: Women Final
5.00pm: Men 3-4
6.00pm: Men Final
7.00pm: Closing Ceremony and Prize Presentation
8.00pm: Players Party

Hopeful of a final appearance

The KL players warming up during their training stint in New Delhi


Hosts Kuala Lumpur are banking on their SUKMA gold medal winning players to steer the team to the finals of the men’s competition at the inaugural International Inter City Kabaddi Championships at the Police Depot from Dec 26-28.

The KL squad, coached by former national captain R. Balamurugan will however face the going tough against India’s New Delhi and also Sri Lanka’s Colombo.

The experienced Delhi side are expected to start as the favourites for the tournament. Colombo, with five national players, would also be a big threat.

Colombo will feature the likes of KPT Thushara, KS Meegastanne, ALM Niswan, EAUK Alwis and KAP Nishantha, who have all played for Sri Lanka at the Asian Games as well as the South Asian Games.

Compared to both Delhi and Colombo, Kuala Lumpur would field a relatively young side with an average age of 23.

Kuala Lumpur will have the likes of M. Paramasiven, who played at the Busan Asian Games.

The team would also feature former national juniors P. Vimal and K. Saravanan.

Another experienced youngster – K. Siva – will skipper the squad.

Srinagar are also expected to be strong contenders in the men’s competition.

Kuala Lumpur have just returned from a training stint in New Delhi in preparation for the tournament.

During the training stint in New Delhi, the team was also invited to play in a tournament and finished second to an Indian team.

In the women’s competition, Colombo are expected to start off as the favourites.

Their women's side will feature three players, who had helped Sri Lanka to the silver at the last South Asian Games - UMNWPJM Rathnayake, MMNTK Bandara and SPN Dilhani.

Colombo’s strongest challenge is expected to come from India’s Srinagar.

Eepro, Milo and 100 Plus are among the sponsors of the tournament, also supported by the Federal Territory Sports Council.

Coaching Clinic for Juniors

The Kabaddi Association of Kuala Lumpur will be conducting a special coaching clinic for junior players during the inaugural International Inter City Kabaddi Championships at the Police Depot.

The clinic would be held on Dec 28 at 2.00pm. All junior players below the age of 19 are encouraged to attend the clinic.

The clinic would be conducted by some of the top stars from the participating teams.

No Kabaddi in Sukma

The SUKMA supreme council, in their meeting today has decided that there would be no new additions to the number of sports at the Games in Melaka in 2010.

This would mean that kabaddi would have to sit out of the Games once again. Kuala Lumpur emerged as the champions at this years edition of the Sukma in Kuala Terengganu where kabaddi was a demonstration sport.

It looks like the best that kabaddi can get in Melaka is another demonstration status.

The question now is whether the Kabaddi Association of Malaysia president Datuk Shahidan Kassim was going to remain. He had said that he would reconsider his position if kabaddi was not included as a competitive sport at the Melaka SUKMA.

Strong Colombo squad

K.S. Meegasthanna (extreme left 1st row), K.A.P.Nishantha (3rd left, 1st row), E.A.U.K. Alwis (6th left, 1st row)), A.L.M.Niswan (4th, 2nd row) are among the national stars in the Colombo squad. Top picture on the right is KRA Ranasinghe who would be leading the team as the manager


Colombo have named several national players in their sides for the International Inter City Kabaddi Championships to be held at the Police Depot in Kuala Lumpur from December 26-28.

Their women's side will feature three players, who had helped Sri Lanka to the silver at the last South Asian Games.

The selection of the trio of UMNWPJM Rathnayake, MMNTK Bandara and SPN Dilhani would certainly put Colombo as one of the early favourites to win the women's competition at the tournament.

Colombo's strongest challenge is expected to come from India's Srinagar.

The Colombo men's squad would also see several former and current national players.

The squad would feature the likes of KPT Thushara, KS Meegastanne, ALM Niswan, EAUK Alwis and KAP Nishantha, who have all played for Sri Lanka at the Asian Games as well as the South Asian Games.

The strong Colombo squad would certainly be a major threat to the medal aspirations of the hosts Kuala Lumpur

New Delhi and Srinagar are also expected to be strong contenders in the men's competition.

Kuala Lumpur have just returned from a training stint in New Delhi and are hopeful of a strong finish at the championships.

The Kuala Lumpur squad is expected to feature several key players who helped the side win the Sukma gold earlier this year.

During the training stint in New Delhi, the team was also invited to play in a tournament and finished second to an Indian team.

The championships is part of the continued development programme conducted by the KAKL.

The state teams are currently being coached by former national captain Balamurugan Rengasami Naidu. Balamurugan, who is also the current national women's coach, and assisted by S. Balakrishnan.

Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya are expected to name their squads for the tournament before Wednesday.

Eepro, Milo and 100 Plus are among the sponsors of the tournament, also supported by the Federal Territory Sports Council.

Back from training

The Kuala Lumpur Kabaddi squad have returned home after a fruitful training session in New Delhi.

The team also took the opportunity to play in a tournament organised by the local hosts and ended a creditable second.

Next up for the squad would be the International Inter City Kabaddi Championships in Kuala Lumpur from Dec 26-28.

ALL ARE WELCOME

City of Faridabad to join IIKC

Faridabad, a major industrial city and population centre in Haryana India, are almost certain of taking part in the inaugural International Inter City Kabaddi Championships 2008 (IIKC).

The city was founded in 1607 by Shaikh Farid, treasurer of Jahangir Khan, and comes with a rich tradition in kabaddi.

Among the other teams already confirmed their participation in the tournament are Chennai, Colombo, New Delhi, Triconmalee.

Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya would lead the Malaysian challenge at the tournament to be held at the Police Depot from Dec 26-28.

A team comprising of foreign players representing Kuala Lumpur Expatriates are also expected to participate.

Competition would be held for both the men and women’s categories.

Funny Kabaddi Ads

Off to India

The Kuala Lumpur Kabaddi team will leave for India today for an intensive six-day training stint in preparation for the inaugural International Inter City Kabaddi Championships (IIKC) to be held at the Police Depot from December 26-28.

The 13 strong team would be training with a local club in New Delhi and play a number of matches there as part of the final phase of training for the IIKC.

Federal Territory Sports Council (MSWP) Director M. Noor Azman Taib, who handed the Federal Territory Flag to the team, expressed confidence that Kuala Lumpur would continue their fine form at the IIKC.

Kuala Lumpur are the reigning Sukma gold medallist as well as two time defending President's Cup champions.

"The MSWP would continue to support the development of kabaddi in the Federal Territory and we are happy with the work done by the Kabaddi Association of Kuala Lumpur in developing the sport," said Noor Azman.

He added that they were disappointed that kabaddi has not been included as a medal sport at the next Sukma in Melaka.

"We were one of those who supported the move to include kabaddi at the Sukma. Since it did not get into Melaka, we certainly hope it would be included in Perlis," he added.

Noor Azman said that, despite the setback, the MSWP still considered kabaddi as a sport with plenty of potential and that they would continue to support and assist the sport.

The IIKC would see Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya going up against some of the best foreign city teams.

Kuala Lumpur Kabaddi Association (KAKL) president S.T. Arasu said that the IIKC was mooted as part of the associations continued development programme.

"We are currently the best side in Malaysia and to maintain that status we need to continually look into ways of getting our players more exposure. The IIKC would be a perfect way to gain the experience," he added.

KAKL has targeted for either the Kuala Lumpur or Putrajaya side to make the final of the men's competition.

"We expect New Delhi to be the toughest team in the men's but we would be able to match the other sides," said Arasu.

So far New Delhi, Chennai, Colombo, Triconmalee and Kashmir are the foreign teams to have already confirmed their participation.

To add colour to the tournament, the KAKL have also decided to include a Kuala Lumpur Expatriate team, comprising of foreign players working in Kuala Lumpur.

KAKL have not put a target for their women's team.

"We have just started on our women's programme and it would take some time before they are ready for competitions like this," said Arasu.

He added that the association was hoping to make the IIKC an annual affair and build it into a premier international kabaddi event.

"There has never been an international competition for teams representing states or clubs anywhere in the world and we hope that the IIKC would be a catalyst for the game," said Arasu.

The state teams are currently being coached by former national captain Balamurugan Rengasami Naidu. Balamurugan, who is also the current national women's coach, will be assisted by S. Balakrishnan.

Eepro, Milo and 100 Plus are among the sponsors of the tournament.

Budiman Rovers Thrill

Newcomers Budiman Rovers came within a whisker of unseating favourites Sri Devi Dragons at the second leg of the Kuala Lumpur Closed Kabaddi Championships on November 22nd.

Budiman Rovers, powered by two Indian imports, missed out on the title on a countback after they held Sri Devi Dragons to a 5-5 draw in their league match.

Both teams finished the round robin league competition with three wins and a draw but the Sri Devi Dragons clinched the title on superior points scored.

The match between the two sides turned out to be a thriller with Budiman Rovers leading 5-3 with just a minute to go.

But the Sri Devi Dragons, comprising of several players who helped the Federal Territory win the Sukma gold earlier this year, scored two successive points to earn the draw.

Kg Pandan Lions finished third in the tournament that also served as selection ground for the International Inter City Kabaddi Championships (IIKC) to be held in Kuala Lumpur from Dec 26-28.

A total of 24 players were shortlisted for the final phase of training to pick the KL side for the IIKC.

The players would start centralised training under the guidance of coach S. Balakrishnan.

The IIKC will see the KL squad going up against teams representing several foreign cities.

KL and Putrajaya at IICKC

Teams representing Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya would be going up against some of the best city teams from around the world for the inaugural International Inter City Kabaddi Championships (IIKC).

The tournament is being hosted by the Kabaddi Association of Kuala Lumpur (KAKL) from December 26-28.

The championships is part of the continued development programme conducted by the KAKL.

The state teams are currently the undisputed number one team in the country having won the national inter state championships for the Presidents Cup twice in succession.

The team are also the reigning SUKMA champions. This year, teams from the state have won all competitions they had taken part in including the KL Open and Wira Negeri Open.

However, it would be a tough affair for the team at the IIKC. A strong field of teams from the traditional powerhouses including India are expected to participate in the tournament.

KAKL president S.T. Arasu said that the final list of the participating teams would be revealed in two weeks time.

"We have invited a wide range of teams from Asia and Europe. We are also hopeful of getting a team from the USA to play," he said.

The IIKC is expected to see the participation at least eight teams in the men's competition and four teams in the women.

He added that the association was hoping to make the IIKC an annual affair and build it into a premier international kabaddi event.

"There has never been an international competition for teams representing states or clubs anywhere in the world and we hope that the IIKC would be a catalyst for the game," said Arasu.

As part of the preparation for the tournament, KAKL has arranged for a training tour to India early next month.

"We are in the midst of finalising the arrangements for the tour which should take place in early December. We intend to take the best 12 players to India for the tour and hopefully it would be beneficial for our players," said Arasu.

To pick the team, KAKL would be hosting the KL Closed Kabaddi Championships to be hosted by the Sri Devi Kabaddi Club on 22nd November 2008.

The state teams are currently being coached by former national captain Balamurugan Rengasami Naidu. Balamurugan, who is also the current national women's coach, will be assisted by S. Balakrishnan.

The official launch of the IIKC was attended by Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) secretary Datuk Sieh Kok Chi and also representatives from the Federal Territory Sports Council and the sponsors.

KAKL also received the sponsorship pledge from Eepro, who are the official attire sponsors.

KAKL also announced the launch of the inaugural KL Open League championships, which starts in January 2009.

The league is expected to see at least eight teams participating with matches being played every fortnight. Five club sides from the state have already confirmed their participation in the League that would end sometime in June.

"KAKL is on the right track in organising competitions as it will help create the awareness for the game and also help the players improve themselves," said Kok Chi.

He added that kabaddi was an important sport in the Asian calendar as it has already been included in the Asian Games, Asian Beach Games and the Asian Indoor Games.

The Sukma gold medal winning kabaddi squad received cash incentive from the Federal Territory Sports Council for their effort.

KL, the Presidents Cup champions, defeated Kedah in the final to walk away with the gold medal at the Sukma in Terengganu. Kabaddi was a demonstration sport at the Games.

Each player of the winning team was rewarded with RM1,000 by the Council

KL side wins again

Kuala Lumpur’s Sri Devi Kabaddi Club bounced back from a shock defeat in the preliminary rounds to clinch the Wira Negeri Open Kabaddi Championships title.

A lethargic Sri Devi were surprisingly beaten by a solitary point by Sepang District in their opening match at the tournament held in Air Kuning, Negeri Sembilan.

Sri Devi, who won the KL Open Kabaddi Championships last month, came back strongly in their remaining group matches to qualify for the semi-finals from Group A.

As runners-up of the group, they were pitted against arch rivals Sivasangkari Kabaddi Club of Selangor.

It was a repeat of the KL Open final between the two teams. Sri Devi, who beat Sivasangakari 34-17 at the KL Open final, repeated their dominance over their rivals.

The team led by former Busan Asian Games player M Paramasiven and a host of players who helped Kuala Lumpur clinch the Sukma gold medal earlier this year, led 11-1 in the first half.

They powered their way to a comfortable 22-10 win and set up a repeat clash against Sepang in the final.

Former national junior P. Vimalenthiran, P. Dharmenthiran and KL Sukma team captain K. Siva dominated their rivals in the final, avenging their loss earlier in the competition.

The surprise inclusion of national coach M. Palaniandy in the Sepang squad, did not help as Sri Devi played a much more controlled match to run away with a 17-6 win to clinch the title.

The club would be looking to clinch their third title in a row in as many months when they play at the Sri Devi Open Kabaddi Championships next month.

The tournament was, however, marred by the non-appearance of technical officials from the national body.

Team officials from the participating teams were forced to double up as technical officials to ensure the smooth running of the tournament being held for the first time.

Third Crown for Sri Devi

Kuala Lumpur's Sri Devi Kabaddi Club defeated arch rivals Sivasangkari of Selangor for their third men's team title at the KL Open Kabaddi Championships at the Dataran Merdeka on August 10, 2008.

Seri Garing won the women's title after edging Sri Devi and Seri Manjari in a round robin competition. Seri Garing's S. Gomathi was also picked as the Best Women's Player.

The men's final between the top two clubs in the country turned out to be a thriller that was expected.

The first half was evenly fought with both teams playing a highly tactical game.

It was Sivasangkari that took the early initiative. Their defense was impeccable and solid raiding by their lead raider A. Anantharaju saw the side taking a 5-3 lead.

However, Sivasangkari started playing too cautiously and paid the price by losing two successive points. The first half ended with both teams tied 7-7.

Sivasangkari came back strongly in the second half with their tight defense. They raced to a 12-7 lead and looked like they were going to race away with the title.

But, the Sri Devi side, comprising of several players from the KL Sukma side that won the gold earlier this year, started playing more cohesively.

With their lead raiders – former national player M. Paramasiven and skipper K. Siva – finally getting into their rhythm, Sri Devi quickly erased the deficit.

Former national junior P. Vimalenthiran played a sterling role in the defence to swing the edge back to Sri Devi.

Sri Devi's P. Dharmenthiran accounted for crucial defensive catches in the match and was awarded the Best Men's Player for his role.

Once Sri Devi tied the score at 12-12, there was no stopping them. They went to rake in points after points against a suddenly fragile Sivasangkari team.

Sri Devi ended up winning the match by a comfortable 34-17 margin.

The men's competition saw 17 teams from Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Perak, Pahang and Negri Sembilan taking part.

Both Sri Devi A and Sivasangkari emerged unbeaten in their round robin league matches to qualify for the quarter-finals.

In the quarter-finals, Sri Devi A received a walkover from their counterparts Sri Devi B while Sivasangkari were dominant against the Indian expatriate team of Power Tech.

The other quarter-finals saw Bukit Pelandok surprising the more experienced Perak while MIG Sentosa easily defeated Kelab Damansara.

In the semi-finals, Sivasangkari defeated Bukit Pelandok while Sri Devi defeated MIG Sentosa.