At the age of 17, Sanju Devi, daughter of a rice farmer in a far-off village in Chhattisgarh’s Korba district, had a tough choice to make: study and get a job to bring financial stability to her family or take a leap of faith by pursuing a career in Kabaddi.
Eight years later, on November 24, India won the second edition of Women’s Kabaddi World Cup 2025 in Dhaka — and Sanju, who powered her team into several wins in the tournament, bagged the title of “most valuable player (MVP)”.
India had also won the first World Cup, held 13 years ago, against Iran.
Growing up in Kerakachhar village in Pali block, around 90 minutes from Korba, Sanju first played Kabaddi in Class V at her government school. Back then, it was just for fun.
It was when she saw her two cousins, who played Kabaddi in college, that she grew interested in the sport. “Except for my family members, not many girls were interested in playing Kabaddi in Pali. I had no role model but I took inspiration from my parents who always stood strong in tough times and my teachers who said we need to make our country proud,” she said.
At the age of 15, she played Kabaddi at the inter-school level. “At the time, I could not get girls to even form a team to practice with,” she rued.
The turning point came when her two cousins, who had given up on the sport, saw her skills and advised her to join the district Kabaddi association. A private organisation in Korba city, it trained aspiring youngsters in the sport.
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“I had heard that winning a medal or representing the country in national games could make one eligible for a government job. So, I decided to pursue my studies while playing the sport.”
Thus, her professional journey began in 2021. Initially, Sanju would travel to Korba — a 90-minute journey — for training.
“I was pursuing an ITI course in fitter trade (technical training associated with fitting work involved in industries) in Pali. To avoid the daily travel, I stayed in a hostel in Korba for four days and then returned to Pali for two days for my course,” she explained.
Despite the free coaching, pursuing the sport professionally had its own expenses.
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“A lot of credit goes to my coach, Anuj Pratap Singh, at the Kabaddi Sangh who trained me from scratch. But we had to incur money on my food and stay in Korba. My father, Ramji, and mother, Amrika did everything they could and kept my needs before the family’s needs,” said Sanju, now 25.
Her father earns around Rs 75,000 a year and is the sole breadwinner. Her mother is a homemaker. She has a younger brother, who wants to pursue a career in law.
Relief came in 2023, when the Khelo India State Centre of Excellence and the Girls Residential Kabaddi Academy was inaugurated in the Bilaspur district; Sanju was selected to be part of the centre and received free training, food and accommodation.
On Monday, when India beat Chinese Taipei 35-28 to win the World Cup and Sanju was adjudged MVP of the tournament, she said she was not even aware that there was such a title. “I received 1,500 US dollars… I will give it to my father to strengthen the structure of our home,” said a proud Sanju.
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Asked about the challenges she faced during the World Cup, Sanju said she had suffered a shoulder injury while playing against Uganda in the fourth and last league match.
“… it was decided that I would be rested for the semi-finals so I could give my best in the final. But as half-time approached in the semi-final, Iran’s team was trailing by just two points. Since we needed a more comfortable position, I was asked to play with a change in strategy,” she said.
“Mine is a game of speed… I move fast but I was asked to change my technique to confuse them (the opponent). I slowed down and concentrated on dodging with a leading leg and scored two points. After this, our team did not allow them to edge back into the game… and we won 33-21. My physiotherapist helped me a lot with the shoulder injury,” she added.
And in the final against Chinese Taipei, she scored 14 points for the team.
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On what the government can do to produce more athletes like her, Sanju said, “First, support is needed in the initial stage… My family could not afford the expense (on diet and accommodation), but we managed somehow… Many athletes are talented but because they do not have money, they leave. The government, with help from corporates, can sponsor expenses in this initial stage.”
