Kabaddi Rules and Player Positions || How to Play Kabaddi?

There have been several sports whose audience has amplified ever the professional franchise-based leagues have been set up in India and Kabaddi is definitely one of them. Ever since 2014  when the Pro Kabaddi League became an instant success, the sport has been watched by fans across the length and breadth of the country. 

We at KabaddiAdda have got you covered with the rules and regulations of our very own game. In this series of articles, 'How to play Kabaddi?', we explain the sport to you and help you understand it better. 

• Kabaddi is a contact sport where there are 7 players from each team. Teams name 5 substitutes for every match. 
• The winner of the match is the team which wins the most points. If both the teams have an equal number of points, the match ends in a tie. 
• The total match is of 40 minutes divided into two halves of 20 minutes each. 
• The maximum time allotted for one raid is 30 seconds, during which the raider has to touch as many defenders as he/she can. The defender’s aim is to restrict the raider from crossing the mid-line. 
• A coin toss is held to decide which team will raid first. The team which defends during the first raid of the match will raid first during the second half. 

Player positions

Corners- The corners of the team are deployed on the extreme right and left positions on the mat. The responsibility of the defender is to initiate tackles. When the left raider is in action, the right corner is in prime position to initiate any attack and vice versa. 

Covers- The defenders positioned between the ins and center are referred to as the covers. Generally, the teams position their all-rounders in this position. 

Center- In the center position stands the main raider of the team.

Ins- The ins are positioned between the corners and the covers. One of the major responsibilities of the ‘in’ is to protect the corner defender from going into the lobby or out of the mat. The ins are generally the raiders of the team.