Siddharth Desai (Kabaddi)

Some Lesser Known Facts About Siddharth Desai

• Siddharth Desai is an Indian Kabaddi player who is recognized for his tenure as the highest-paid athlete in the 7th Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) season.

• Coming from a humble village backdrop, Siddharth’s introduction to Kabaddi can be credited to Mr. Appa Dalvi, a well-known coach from his hometown.

• Siddharth was good in his studies which led him to acquire a degree in Physics. His elder brother, Suraj, was a big support who pushed him to continue his studies and give it priority over the games. This is one of the reasons, Siddharth started playing professionally a bit later than other boys in his village.

• After his academic pursuits, he joined Air India. Here, under the guidance of Mr. Ashok Sinde, he trained and perfected his Kabaddi skills, often sharing the field with prominent players like Ajay Thakur and Deepak Hooda.

• Siddharth also joined the Indian army for a brief period of time. Due to his unwavering passion for Kabaddi, he went back to the sport, joining the esteemed Satej Kabaddi Club in Pune to train for professional matches.

  

• 2018 marked a pivotal year for Siddharth Desai. He represented Maharashtra in the senior nationals and his team secured a gold medal. This event was particularly significant, considering Maharashtra had not won any gold for more than a decade. This event also gave Siddharth a chance to be qualified for the Pro Kabaddi League.

  

• Siddharth was acquired by the U Mumba franchise for an impressive INR 36.4 Lakh. His exemplary performance, which consisted of 218 raid points and 3 tackle points, caught a lot of attention in the industry.

• Consequently, the Telegu Titans extended an offer of INR 1.45 Cr in the subsequent 7th season making him the highest-paid Kabaddi player during the season. Under the guidance of Coach L Srinivas Reddy, he continued to play for the next two seasons as well – seasons 8 and 9.

  

• During his tenure with the Telegu Titans, he wore jersey number 8.

• Suraj Desai, Siddharth’s sibling, also shares a commendable reputation in Kabaddi. Notably, he played for the Jaipur Pink Panthers during the league’s inaugural season. Due to an injury, he was not able to represent Delhi in the 5th season. However, he made a return with the Telegu Titans for the 7th season, contributing to 12 matches.

• Besides his passion for Kabaddi, Desai is also passionate about music and often dedicates a substantial amount of time to guitar practice daily. He also has a YouTube channel where he shares covers of various Bollywood songs. In an interview, he said that engaging with music for one hour every day helps him concentrate well on his games and is a great stress buster.

 

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• Siddharth loves animals and often advocated for pet protection. He even posts about it on his social media where he encourages people to feed the stray. Siddharth also owns a pet dog named Buster.
  

  

  

• Siddharth has a huge fan following on his social media accounts and so, he often advertises for various brands including Vision 11, Olymp Trade, and XLR8 Sports Nutrition.

• The kabaddi champion credits his agility and strength to his discipline. He works out almost every single day without a miss. He also likes to swim whenever he has time.

 

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