Titanic quest for kabaddi glory

“Wiser from the experience gained in the first edition, and our confidence levels bolstered substantially, we are now eyeing the pot of gold in the form of the trophy with renewed hope, which is backed by a dexterous blend of proven experience and youth.”

These words hold substance considering that Srinivas Sreeramaneni (Srini), Chairman of Core Green Group, is oozing with confidence about the prospects of Telugu Titans in the second edition of Pro Kabaddi League (KPL). Along with Mahesh Kolli and Anil Chalamalasetty of Greenko Group and Nedurumalli Gautam of NED Group, Srini, a first generation entrepreneur who has spent close to two decades in the United States, is a co-owner.

Incidentally, Core Green Group has floated ¡ Veera Sports as its exclusive arm that strives to give fillip to a multitude of sports disciplines and establishing facilities and organising events.

“The team has performed quite admirably. With two impressive wins from three outings, we are rearing to go against the Warriors in Kolkata on Thursday,” reasons Srini, an MS from North Carolina State University, whose business portfolio includes interests in sugar, power, bio-fuels and bio-fertilizers apart from diverse software companies.

Tracing the conceptualization of PKL, he points out that ‘one should give credit to Anand Mahindra, who envisioned a vibrant platform and presence for non-cricketing disciplines. He translated his dream of providing a trail-blazing league for kabaddi, which could take it to newer vistas and help in making it an Olympic sport in the not too distant future. When he approached me and other likeminded corporate heads, who all shared an unequivocal passion for sport, we jumped on to the bandwagon. Thus was formed Pro Kabaddi League, which is here to stay’.

On other aspects, he points out, ‘PKL is a journey we have embarked upon giving for ourselves a ten-year gestation period to even think of breaking even in its realistic sense. It is an overwhelming zeal for doing out bit for promoting sports that binds us together. That, in a way, is the secret behind the cult-like image the rugged sport is getting, thanks largely to the revolutionary promotion being taken up by Starsports. Their role towards boosting the sport’s prospects, which is the talk of the town, is of the highest order.’

On the more personal level, Srini says that the Titans are the team to beat this time around.

“You see the average age is 23 years. What gives room for our optimism is that we have knit together a winning combination. On paper, we are the fittest and youngest, while our overseas purchases of two Iranians (at a whopping Rs 21 lakh) who have been there and done add to our star power. Should the boys perform to potential on every match-day, we can nurture hopes of annexing the coveted trophy on August 23.

“We have players drawn from all corners of the country in addition to the overseas players. An 18-year-old from Haryana, Sandeep has been a revelation. We are also banking on two youngsters from closer home to render their parts and help achieve our quest cornering greater glory. In Tole Prasad from Khammam and Chirala boy Sri Krishna, we have the best bets from the two Telugu-speaking States.”

Taking the topic away from the competitive battle, Srini says that the Titans had committed itself to not only being integral to the PKL calculations but also in spotting and fine-tuning talent that is available in the two States.

“Our academy, which will function more like a caravan, will have camps at select pockets so that players from the interiors will get an opportunity to showcase their potential and win national and international laurels on the morrow while learning the nuances and perfecting match-winning skills under the tutelage of coaches with established credentials like Visakhapatnam-based Prasad Rao. “

Meanwhile, the most redeeming aspect of Telugu Titans is in its avowed commitment to help the have-nots in general and the girl-child in particular.

‘To make the players rise to the occasion in a noble cause we have decided to sponsor three street children for every win the team registers in the ongoing edition. We have set apart a separate corpus fund from which the identified boys and girls will be provided assistance till they complete their graduation or land up with their first job. We have tied up with certain institutions that will provide vocational training to these ‘products’ as a means for generating self-employment. This is specifically so for the girls,” says Srinivas with a seriousness that implies that this factor will be paramount to all future plans.

Srinivas is hopeful of conducting the best phase of the second edition when they host the Hyderabad leg of the League from August 4 to 7. There is uniqueness to him on the personal front as well. He belongs to a select band of Indians whose birthday falls on the Independence Day. He is hopeful of providing the icing on the cake eight days after his ensuing birthday.

SRIDHAR K PENNA