Planning, key behind Bulls’ run

Bengaluru Bulls, after five seasons, finally clinched their maiden Pro Kabaddi League title last week. It was a dominant show by the Bulls throughout the tournament and coach B C Ramesh said it was a result of perfect planning.

“We had a clear vision. We wanted to go for an attacking unit and at the auction, we carefully picked very good young raiders. We wanted at least eight good raiders and I am glad we got them. And one of the key reasons behind our success was the preparations that went into this league. We began training two months prior to the league and that gave us ample time to watch videos of each player and analyse his style,” said Ramesh, the former India international from Karnataka.

The Bulls had a terrific start and the Rohit Kumar-led side built a big lead early. They eventually topped the league phase with 78 points. “We had discussed that we will try to do well in the first half of the league. We wanted to touch the 50-point mark as early as possible. Because in the past, we have struggled to regroup following a bad start. And the pressure is huge once the league reaches the business end,” Ramesh said.

The Bengaluru unit was runner-up in the 2015 edition and it appeared the title would elude this time as well in the final in Mumbai. At the half-way mark, their opponents Gujarat Fortunegiants were clearly the better side as they led 16-9.

“We wanted to always attack but we also never panicked. Throughout the league, I showed patience with the players. Even in the final, we didn’t want to panic. I told the players it was just about scoring a couple of big points and we are back in the game. Thankfully, our style of kabaddi worked,” he explained.