Rahul Chaudhari exposes politics & favouritism in PKL

Rahul Chaudhari played 154 games in PKL and has 1,045 points to his name.

Pro Kabaddi League poster boy Rahul Chaudhari recently made headlines with his explosive revelations about politics and favouritism in the league.

After going unsold in the PKL 11 auction, the celebrated raider decided to retire from the sport, marking the end of an era for his countless fans. Months later, Chaudhari has broken his silence, shedding light on the factors that influenced his decision and the challenges he faced in his illustrious career. Speaking candidly on the Sagar Sinha Podcast on YouTube, Rahul Chaudhari revealed how his rise to celebrity status impacted his game.

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On degrading performance

“Once a person becomes a celebrity, they kind of lose the edge. I used to practice a lot, like four times a day. Then I started attending events and functions, and that lessened. I would attend those events probably the entire evening, so I started missing out on the practices, which started affecting my game and body,” Rahul Chaudhari admitted.

The star raider, who began his PKL journey with the Telugu Titans in Season 1, became synonymous with the league’s early success. Despite moving to different teams like Tamil Thalaivas, Puneri Paltan, and finally, Jaipur Pink Panthers, where he won his maiden PKL trophy in Season 9, his form dipped in the later seasons. Reflecting on this decline, Chaudhari pointed fingers at the coaches, alleging a lack of support and unjust treatment.

On being benched by coaches despite good performances

“It is not that I didn’t try to change things back, but the coach has to play a good role in it. In seasons 6 and 7, I played so well, but suddenly in the 8th season, the coach did not play me. I hardly played any games in the 9th season. I think it was an injustice towards me because I brought in gold in the National Games,” Rahul Chaudhari stated.

On being unsold at the PKL 11 auctions

Rahul Chaudhari’s frustrations extended to the auction process, where he felt overlooked despite his credentials. “I decided to retire because it is unfair for someone with a national gold and good performances to go unsold in the PKL auction. Now, to prove myself to all these 12 coaches, I will play at the national and international matches. I will show them that I didn’t deserve to go unsold,” he declared, his determination palpable.

On mistreatment by Jaipur Pink Panthers coach Sanjeev Baliyan

Recounting a challenging moment from Season 10, Rahul Chaudhari shared how a health issue impacted his performance but failed to garner sympathy from the system. “Before the start of the season, I got some stomach pain. We were traveling before our first match for the national meet at Ahmednagar, and midway, I had to get off and get treatment. I played with that throughout the season and even took the team to the quarters, but I was left unsold in the PKL 11 auction. This shows that the entire setup is different,” he said.

Chaudhari didn’t hold back in criticizing the favouritism prevalent in the league. “It is like you have to go to the coach, beg him, bribe him, then only you will get selected. It is all about the coach’s will. Some players have done nothing, hardly four or five points in a season, and they still get sold at the auctions. So, you know it is so wrong with the players,” he lamented.

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