Iran lands in 3rd place at 2016 Asian Kabaddi Cup

The national Iranian men’s Kabaddi team has put a convincing end to its campaign at the 2016 Asian Kabaddi Cup in Pakistan, claiming the third position after beating Afghanistan by a 43-point margin.

On Friday, the Iranian outfit vanquished Afghanistan 57-14 in its final match at Pakistan Ordnance Factory Sports Complex in Wah Cantonment to earn the bronze medal.

Pakistan defeated arch rivals India by 50-31 in the final match of the tournament, which was watched by thousands of spectators.

“It's a great feeling to win the Asian title at our home surface. This happened because Pakistan Kabaddi Federation (PKF) provided us enough training facilities,” Musharraf Janjua, a seed in the Pakistani Kabbadi team, said after the match.

He added, “It's good that our traditional circle style Kabaddi is being revived. I would request the government to provide more funds to the federation to enable it to organize more international championships in Pakistan and promote this traditional sport.”

“We can be two countries, there can be political things, but in our sport, we are two brothers,” Indian-born President of the International Kabaddi Federation (IKF), J S Gehlot, said at the closing ceremony.

The 2016 Asia Kabaddi Cup opened in Wah Cantonment, Pakistan, on May 2, 2016, and wrapped up on May 6.

National teams from Afghanistan, India, Iran, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka participated in the five-day tournament.

Kabaddi is the national game of Bangladesh and also the state game of the Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Punjab.

India has the most successful Kabaddi team on the world stage, having won every World Cup and Asian Games title so far, in both men’s and women’s categories.

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