Thalaivas aims to nurture best talent

The academy will be home to 80 budding kabaddi players, with equal weightage given to boys and girls. The open selection will culminate on Sunday under the supervision of SAF Games gold medallist Kasinatha Baskaran. 

“We wanted to give a platform to the talented youngsters and provide facilities free of cost. The goal of the academy is to produce talent at the highest level. We want the best to be nurtured well and come out in flying colours,” said Viren D’Silva, CEO, Tamil Thalaivas.  

The first batch is set to begin next month. The selected candidates, who will either be part of the Under-14, Under-17, Under-19 or the Under-25 categories, will have access to free training, education, residence, food and nutrition. 

Speaking on what prompted the management members to appoint former first team coach Baskaran as the Technical Director of the programme, he added, “Baskaran knows the various dynamics of kabaddi and is highly experienced. He is also based in Tamil Nadu. Hence, he has moved into this role.” 

Jeppiaar School had finished runner-up in the KBD Juniors last year. Viren noted that it acted as a stimulus in choosing the institution as the venue for the academy. “We had many interactions with them (board members) and they are very forthcoming and forward looking in terms of how to develop the sport,” remarked Viren. 

Baskaran was happy that the open trial exceeded the franchise’s expectation, with around 600 entrants participating in it. “Only because of this kind of response, we held trials in districts like Salem, Erode, Nagercoil etc,. People who failed to get selected in those have also come all the way to Chennai to be a part of it,” said an elated Baskaran.  

Thalaivas captain Ajay Thakur felt the setting up of a residential academy as a step in the right direction. “It is a great opportunity for young players to practice with worldclass facilities. It is a very positive initiative and a great step by Tamil Thalaivas. It will pave way for them to be a part of PKL one day,” asserted Thakur in a video posted by the Chennai-based franchise.  

The raider opined the initiative will only reinforce the team’s arsenal. “It will be a good backup plan for our team. The academy will definitely strengthen the foundation of Thalaivas.”