CHENNAI: As the crowd trickled into the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium from Sydenhams Road, the excitement was already writ large on the faces of a couple of Bengal Warriors fans. Sporting Jang Kun Lee jerseys, they were hoping to see another masterclass from ‘our favourite South Korean’.
“As soon as Chennai had a new team, we were looking forward to watching Jang in the flesh,” a fan said. “We’ve been watching Warriors on our TVs for the last few years, so finally excited to see him raid.”
Jang did not bring his customary raids to the table on Sunday. He wasn’t required to be at his best as the Warriors stole a buzzer-beater, beating Jaipur Pink Panthers 32-31. But those two fans weren’t the only ones speaking about Jang, who might well be the most popular sportsperson from his country to have set foot in India. Even if the cheers and instant recognition will be music to his years, he is doing far more important work.
In the inaugural edition in 2014, Jang was one of the few foreigners who got substantial game time. Most of the others were on the bench with the explicit purpose of smiling at the camera. Three years removed and his successes on mats up and down the country have meant more South Koreans in the league.
On Sunday alone, eight — Donggeon Lee, Chansik Park, Yongjoo Ok, Dongju Hong, Jaemin Lee, Donggyu Kim, Youngchang Ko and Jang — were part of the roster of four of the 12 teams. It’s one of the reasons why regular watchers of PKL did not bat an eyelid when South Korea beat India in the first match of the 2016 World Cup.
South Korea turned their attention to kabaddi — they even have a proper base for the sport in Busan — just before the last Asiad in 2014. However, Jang, an almost totemic figure behind the sport’s unlikely rise in a country that favours Taekwondo, has been the figurehead.
Jang is the best foreign player when it comes to successful raids (260) and the only non-Indian in the top-20 of this list. He has 323 raid points in five seasons and is the only foreigner in the top-15.
Youngchang, a Warriors teammate, credits Jang for the work he has done. “We were in the same university at one time and he knew I liked to watch kabaddi a lot. I also had a basic idea of the sport. So, one day he came up to me and said, ‘Why don’t you play? We could do with guys like you’.”
Youngchang kept up his end of the bargain, made the squad and helped Jang beat India in Ahmedabad. Warriors liked what they saw, asked Jang for some guidance and quickly snaffled Youngchang.
Interestingly enough, while their kabaddi team was making waves in India, it was bereft of any attention back home. “Jang is more popular in India. People have his jerseys. There, nobody knows him. We are very small.”
After the PKL finishes, the merry bunch will go back to Busan. For them, the next target is the 2018 Asiad in Jakarta. Beat India there for gold (India have never lost a kabaddi match at the Asiad since the sport’s inception in 1990) and the revolution may be complete. swaroop@newindianexpress.com
Sunday’s results: Bengal Warriors bt Jaipur Pink Panthers 32-31, U Mumba bt Tamil Thalaivas 33-30.