Atrachali is a gentle Giant, says Gujarat’s rising star Sonu

PUNE: The fans were at the edge of their seats during the last minute of the match between Gujarat Giants and U Mumba. Both teams were locked at 36-36 when the Giants’ captain Fazel Atrachali directed Sonu to go for the all-important raid.

With the entire stadium chanting ‘Sonu Sonu’ the raider, who missed out on the eighth season due to an ankle injury and a few games in Season 9 due to the recurrence of the same injury, moved into U Mumba’s side of the mat with confidence. Within a few seconds, he caught Rinku, Guman Singh and Amirmohammad Zafardanesh to complete a Super Raid and seal the deal for his team. This has been the story of the Gujarat Giants this season. Whenever they needed someone to step up, Sonu has been their man.

When asked about how he has dealt with injuries in his career, the 23-year-old said, “I incurred an injury during a practice session before the eighth season. I twisted my ankle and my bone broke and couldn’t walk properly for two months. Then I took one year to recover fully. However, I experienced ankle pain after four games in Season 9. I took some rest and played some more games.”

Being fully fit this year, Sonu is absolutely enjoying his time with the legendary Atrachali, who has been known to be a mentor to many youngsters in the league. Speaking about him, the raider said, “Fazel is a seasoned campaigner and it’s a lot of fun to play with him. He corrects our mistakes and treats us like brothers. He has told us to play freely and not worry about anything else. If a certain game doesn’t go according to our plan then he says he will be the one who will step up for the team.”

Kabaddi has always been an integral part of the people’s lives in his village in Panipat, Haryana. Going back to his formative years in kabaddi, Sonu said, “My elder brother used to play kabaddi and he used to take me to the ground. Then I joined a camp in SAI near my house and I worked very hard there. Thereafter, I just kept going through the levels - district, nationals and state and gained a lot of confidence. There are a lot of players from our village, who have gone on to play in the Pro Kabaddi League. My brother is trying to join the league too.”