Kho Kho World Cup 2025: Madan Kumar Representing India - Journey From Lockdown Struggles To Nation's Hope

India will host the Kho Kho World Cup in January 2025. The players have already started to prepare for the inaugural tournament and Madan Kumar who hails from New Delhi and made his India debut in March 2023 is gearing up to represent the his nation at the biggest stage. (More Sports News)

The youngster feels that the global event will help the sport gather more attention. "I focus on my preparations. I concentrate on keeping my body ready for the tournament. Every Sunday, I go for physiotherapy to keep the injuries away. Ultimate Kho Kho League has certainly changed a lot of things. People have started to get to know about the sport. I think it will gain even more popularity after the World Cup,” Madan said.

A B.A (Programming) student, Madan credited his brother for introducing him to the sport and also giving him the coaching lessons in the initial stages of his career.

“My elder brother used to play the sport. So, from there, I was inspired to take it up. Initially, he trained me and then I entered professional training. Slowly and steadily, I started playing at junior level then senior and then at the national level,” he said.

Madan unfortunately lost his father during the lockdown due to kidney failure but received support from his mother to continue playing the game. “I lost my father during the lockdown due to kidney failure. My mother supports me a lot and lets me play the sport.”

Talking about the domestic circuit, Madan explained how players have to grind through to make it to the highest level and don the Indian colours.

“I am from Delhi and play for Chhatrasal Stadium. Pawan sir is our coach. The players first play for the district. Then there is a selection process which takes place from the top three teams. Then there is state and the players are selected for camps. From there on, the players move ahead. I played my first game for India in March 2023.”

Speaking of the Ultimate Kho Kho League, Madan stated, “The franchise-based model is a good concept and will help the sport grow. Also, the players want to play UKKL. It gives both-- a lot more opportunities to the players and also monetary help. It also serves as the platform for players to play at the highest level."

Madan’s fitness regime includes runnings, chin ups, dips, sprints of 400m, 800m.

KKFI’s sports science app is something which according to him is a very good concept to give better feedback to the players about fitness.

“This is a very good idea actually. A player gets good feedback about his shortcomings and where he has to work. It's quite beneficial for the players,” he concluded.

India will be hosting the first-ever Kho Kho World Cup next year featuring 16 men's and as many women's teams coming from 24 countries and six continents.