Kabaddi star Rakesh Kumar dodges old storm, keeps his eye on the prize

Kabaddi player Rakesh Kumar's last outing in the Pro Kabaddi League didn't end well. In August 2015, he was unceremoniously ousted as the captain of Patna Pirates after sustaining an injury. He soon went off the radar but now Kumar's back in the spotlight. This time, he is playing for U Mumba under the captaincy of Anup Kumar.

When ETPanache questioned him about his previous dismissal, the Arjuna Awardee and the highest paid sportsman in the league's first season, preferred not to comment. "Little things like these keep happening," says Kumar speaking over the phone from Bengaluru. "All I want to do now is focus on my game and make my current team proud. If I keep thinking of the past, it will affect my performance." Was there any attempt by Mukand Steel 's Rajesh Shah, owner of Patna Pirates, to reach out to Kumar during those tough times? "I have immense respect for Rajeshji for making the highest bid for me in the previous seasons," says Kumar. "But he's a busy man. So we never interacted as such."

Kumar insists that he has no misgivings about going from being captain of his previous team for two seasons to following instructions of another captain now. "Not being captain means that I can focus on the game and win for the team. It's a big weight off my shoulders," he says.