PKL 10: Fazel Atrachali and Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh – the tale of the Sultan and his successor

Team sport is a funny affair. On one side, it is camaraderie and cohesion; on the other, it is also an arena where you can see players striving hard for individual glory. You have opponents to trounce, of course, but you also have your teammates to outshine so you can rise above the rest.

A prime example of this is Iranian all-rounder Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh. His individual pursuit of glory in kabaddi has propped up every single team he has turned out for in his nascent career.

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Into his third full season in the Pro Kabaddi League (after finishing among the top two defenders in both seasons prior), Shadloui is already among the most feared defenders, flying the Iranian brand of defence-heavy kabaddi high. However, where he steers clear from the rest is in his efforts to not confine his talents to a single department.

“I am a good raider and have the skillset for it. I promise you, if I come into PKL as a pure raider, I will finish somewhere in the top three. But I prefer defence because raiders are injury-prone. If I am required to raid, why not?” the towering Iranian tells  Sportstar.

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A lone wolf

Pro Kabaddi got a glowing example of this last season when he scored 19 points (16 in defence and three raid points) in a close 27-30 loss to Dabang Delhi. That Herculean effort saw him break the league record for most tackle points (16) and most super tackles (eight) in a single match.

“If you have a big heart and your mind and body are ready, you can do anything on the mat. It’s all about your mind. I am always ready. Maybe in the next match, I’ll score 18 points,” Shadloui adds with a smirk. This confidence from the 23-year-old can often be mistaken for arrogance. However, what sets Shadloui apart is his absolute unabashed acceptance of it.

“This is my personality. Confidence comes naturally to me. Everyone has a bit of stress before the match or in big tournaments, but when I get onto the mat, my mind focuses on what is happening at that moment,” he explains.

After a lull in international action triggered by a lack of consistent efforts from the powers that be and then the COVID-19 pandemic, kabaddi got two major tournaments in 2023 — the Asian Kabaddi Championships in Busan and the Asian Games in Hangzhou.

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Iran coach Gholamreza Mazandarani made heads turn when he used Shadloui as a raider in Korea, something that carried into the Asiad in China. That potentially helped jack up his value at the PKL 10 auction. The ₹2.35 crore that Puneri Paltan doled out for him left even someone with Shadloui’s heightened sense of self-worth gobsmacked.

Building a legacy

“We were on the flight back from China, so we couldn’t watch the auction. When I found out how much I got, I couldn’t believe it. Usually, defenders don’t get so much money; it’s the raiders who get the most money. This time, all teams have understood that defence is also important. If you have a good defence, then your raiders can do better,” he explains.

While the Iranian is cagey when asked what his vision board for the season looks like, he is happy to reveal what his long-term intentions are in the Pro Kabaddi League.

“I want to make big records in PKL. After 10 years, everything should be in Shadloui’s name, and those records should be unbeatable. I want my name to have a legend associated with it, and this is not hard for me to do. It might be hard for others, but not for me,” he says.

Kabaddi royalty

It is clear that the Iranian setup sees Shadloui as the future, as evidenced by how he was handed the captain’s armband in Busan — a tournament where the squad was packed with young up-and-comers.

However, Shadloui’s usual position — the left corner — is one that has traditionally been occupied by a certain Fazel Atrachali, Iran’s captain, for most of the last decade. Atrachali’s success in international and league kabaddi spurred an interest in the sport in his country and among audiences in nations that took to the sport.

The 33-year-old is one of the most experienced players in the ecosystem, with four Asian Games campaigns under his belt from which he has won one gold and three silver medals. He has two Pro Kabaddi titles to his name, one with U Mumba in season two and the other with Patna Pirates in season four.

Atrachali holds the record for most successful tackles and tackle points (449, as of January 1, 2024). He also has the most wins as captain in PKL history (63 and counting). He was the first foreign player to draw a ₹1 crore bid in the league and after being the most expensive player in the league for a few seasons in a row, finally ceded that spot to Shadloui, coming second best this year with Gujarat Giants roping him in for ₹1.38 crore.

He came close to lifting his third PKL title last season with Puneri Paltan, but the side fell short in the final, a loss he deems more painful than the Asian Games defeat to India.

“Last season was very important for me. I wanted to finally lift the trophy as a captain. We were unlucky because in the final, we did not have the services of our main raiders, Aslam Inamdar and Mohit Goyat, who were out injured. At the time, I told myself, ‘I tried; I did my best. That’s all I can do’. Sometimes, you don’t play well, and the team also doesn’t. That is really hard. But when you do your best in a losing situation, at least there’s something to console yourself with,” Atrachali says.

Perils of leadership

There was a time when Atrachali was the obnoxious international player making life difficult for Indians in a sport they gave to the world. With time, he has moved on from individual pursuits to finding solace in his pack, something he believes is the way an achiever naturally progresses in team sports.

“I am always thinking about where we can score or save points. Sometimes, I am constantly talking to players but no one is talking to me. When you are captain, no one cares about guiding you,” he reveals.

This is where coach Ram Mehar Singh’s involvement and control over match proceedings and the company of his compatriot Mohammad Nabibakhsh helps Atrachali.

“I do have phases where I am nervous about what will happen next for me in life or during a tournament. It helps to have Nabibakhsh, who is also my roommate here, with me. I tell him, ‘If I don’t know what to do sometimes, you tell me’,” he says.

“Everyone is saying a lot of things about my leadership and my records. At the end of it all, though, I am a player. I also make mistakes. The good thing about the coach is that he adds me to his instructions. He pushes me to try and not worry about the consequences. There will be games when Fazel might not be good, and then someone else needs to step up. If only one or two players are going to work, you are more of a weakness for your side than a strength,” the veteran defender explains.

Atrachali recognises his career’s twilight phase, emphasising the importance of success and minimal errors in his performance on the mat. Thinking for seven instead of one doesn’t make that job any easier.

“Before this season, I met Pawan (Sehrawat) in Mumbai for a shoot. He noticed some white hair on my head and said, ‘Fazel, you’ve become old; you’re greying’. I said to him, ‘You haven’t been captain for too long, so you don’t understand’. This conversation happened over a month or so ago. A few days back, I met Pawan again, and the first thing he showed me was his own white hair, saying, ‘Fazel look. I understand now’. Life is difficult as a captain.”

Two sides of a coin

Atrachali and Shadloui represent two ends of the same spectrum. Given the increasing calls to broaden kabaddi to more countries, the tremendous success of such personalities and how unafraid they are to show the highs and lows of the stardom that comes with it are as crucial to players as they are to fans consuming the sport.

The Sultan, as Atrachali’s moniker in kabaddi goes, may have his successor in Shadloui,but that both still have plenty to give back to the sport means its present and future are well and truly secure.