History
- The Pakistan national Kabaddi team have regularly won medals at the Asian Games and Kabaddi World Cups. In seven previous Asian Games, they have won five bronze and two silver medals.
- Since 1985, Pakistan has taken part in 38 major international competitions in which they have reached the finals 25 times (winning five of those competitions, and being runners-up 20 times) and had third-place finishes 13 times).
- Pakistan is the only team besides arch rivals India to win a medal in every Asian Games Kabaddi competition.
- Pakistan won bronze medals in the 1990 and 1994 Asian Games. In the 1998 edition, Pakistan bagged silver, losing to India in the final. Four years later, Pakistan won third place before losing gold to India by 35-23 in the 2006 Asian Games in Doha. Pakistan came third in the next four editions of Asian Games in 2010, 2014, 2018 and 2022.
- Pakistan became champions of South Asia in 1993 by beating archrival India in the final. It was the only time Pakistan became champions of South Asia. After that Pakistani team played as finalists six times and won bronze medals four times but never won another championship.
- Pakistan became Asian champion in 2012 by beating India in the final of Circle Kabaddi Asian Cup after finishing as runner up in the previous edition.
- Pakistan became Asian champion for the second time in a row in 2016 after beating India by 50-31 in the final of the Circle Kabaddi Asian Cup.
- In 2016 Pakistan became Asian champion once again after beating India by 30-28 in the finals. It was the first title of Pakistan in the Asian Beach Games and before that Pakistan finished as runner up for four times in the last four competitions.
- In 2020 Pakistan became World Champion of Kabaddi after being runner up four times in the last five World Cup competitions, beating India by 43-41.[7]
Origination
Kabaddi originated in India. Kabaddi is a traditional sport and cultural heritage of the people of India. It is played in Asian countries. The style of the game varies a little in some countries. It is known by different names in the regional languages. In Pakistan and India, it is known as 'kabaddi' or 'kaudi', in Sri Lanka it is known as 'Guddo', in Indonesia.[8]
Tournament records
Standard kabaddi
World Cup
| Year |
Rank |
Pld |
W |
D |
L |
|---|
 2004 | Withdrew | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2007 | Withdrew | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 | Withdrew | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 0/3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Asian Games
| Year |
Rank |
M |
W |
D |
L |
PF |
PA |
PD |
|---|
 1990 | Third place | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 134 | 131 | +3 |
 1994 | Third place | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 153 | 90 | +63 |
 1998 | Runners-up | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 219 | 80 | +139 |
 2002 | Third place | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 87 | 106 | -19 |
 2006 | Runners-up | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 164 | 142 | +22 |
| 2010 | Third place | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 131 | 70 | +61 |
| 2014 | Third place | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 100 | 89 | +11 |
 2018 | Third place | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 209 | 125 | +84 |
| 2022 | Third place | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 144 | 160 | -16 |
| Total | 9/9 | 44 | 26 | 2 | 16 | 1341 | 993 | +348 |
Asian Kabaddi Championship
South Asian Games
| South Asian Games |
|---|
| Year |
Host city |
Position |
| 1985 |
 Dhaka, Bangladesh |
 |
| 1987 |
Kolkata, India |
|
| 1989 |
 Islamabad, Pakistan |
 |
| 1993 |
Dhaka, Bangladesh |
 |
| 1995 |
Madras, India |
|
| 1999 |
 Kathmandu, Nepal |
|
| 2004 |
Islamabad, Pakistan |
|
| 2006 |
 Colombo, Sri Lanka |
|
| 2010 |
Dhaka, Bangladesh |
|
| 2016 |
Guwahati & Shillong, India |
|
| 2019 |
Kathmandu, Pokhara & Janakpur, Nepal |
|
Dubai Kabaddi Masters
| Year |
Rank |
Pld |
W |
D |
L |
|---|
 2018 | Third place | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| Total | 1/1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
Beach kabaddi
World Beach Kabaddi Championship
| Year |
Rank |
Pld |
W |
D |
L |
|---|
 2024 | Runners-up | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 1/1 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 |
Asian Beach Games
| Year |
Rank |
Pld |
W |
D |
L |
|---|
| 2008 | Runners-up | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
 2010 | Runners-up | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 |
| 2012 | Runners-up | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| 2014 | Runners-up | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
 2016 | Champions | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 5/5 | 26 | 19 | 3 | 4 |
Indoor kabaddi
Asian Indoor and Martial Games
| Year |
Rank |
Pld |
W |
D |
L |
|---|
 2007 | Runners-up | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 |
| 2009 | Did not enter |
| 2013 | Did not enter |
 2017 | Not contested |
| Total | 1/3 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 |
Circle kabaddi
Circle World Cup
| Year |
Rank |
Pld |
W |
D |
L |
|---|
| 2010 | Runners-up | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| 2011 | Third place | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 |
| 2012 | Runners-up | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| 2013 | Runners-up | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 |
| 2014 | Runners-up | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 |
| 2020 | Champions | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 6/6 | 38 | 32 | 0 | 6 |
Circle Asian Cup
| Year |
Rank |
Pld |
W |
D |
L |
|---|
| 2011 | Runners-up | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| 2012 | Champions | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 | Champions | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 3/3 | 15 | 14 | 0 | 1 |
Coaching staff
| Position |
Name |
| Head coach |
Badshah Gul |
| Assistant coach |
(Not publicly detailed) |
| Coaching staff (additional) |
Pakistan Kabaddi Federation staff |
International grounds
Nishtar Park Sports Complex
Locations of stadiums which have hosted international kabaddi matches in Pakistan
| Stadium | City | Province | Capacity | Matches hosted | Notes |
|---|
| Punjab Stadium, Pakistan | Lahore | Punjab | 10,000 | Kabaddi World Cup, international friendlies | Main kabaddi venue in Pakistan; hosted multiple editions of Kabaddi World Cup (circle style) |
| Iqbal Stadium | Faisalabad | Punjab | 18,000 | National finals, exhibition matches | Originally a cricket venue; occasionally used for outdoor kabaddi events |
| Nishtar Park Sports Complex | Lahore | Punjab | 5,000 | Asian Kabaddi Championship, training camps | Multi-sport facility with indoor kabaddi arrangements |
Friendly Tournament records
Circle Style Kabaddi
This style of game introduced in Pakistan in 1956 Pakistan participate in the below mentioned competitions
- Pak Vs India Kabaddi Series 1956, India (Gold)
- Canada Kabaddi Cup 1981, Canada (Silver)
- Pak Vs India Kabaddi Series 1982 Lahore, Pakistan (Gold)
- Pak Vs India Kabaddi Series 1983 Lahore, Pakistan (Silver)
- Pak Vs India Kabaddi Series 1984 Lahore, Pakistan (Gold)
- Prime Minister International Gold Cup 1997, Pakistan (Gold)
- Pak Vs India Kabaddi Series 1998, India (Silver)
- Prime Minister International Gold Cup 1999, Pakistan (Gold)
- Pak Vs India Kabaddi Series 2002, India (Silver)
- Indo-Pak Games 2004 Patyala, India (Silver)
- Takkar Kabaddi Series 2008 Pakistan afaad (Silver)
- Pak Vs India Kabaddi Series 2009, India (Silver)
- International Kabaddi Tournament 2009 Kharian, Pakistan (Gold)
- Kabaddi Premier League 2013, Dubai (Gold)
- International Kabaddi Cup 2013 UK (Bronze)
- 37th International Kabaddi Championship 2014 POF Wah (Gold)
References
- "Revive pro league to save kabaddi, says coach". Retrieved 5 July 2025.
- "Interview : Shafique Ahmad Chishti, Captain Pakistan Kabaddi Team". Retrieved 5 July 2025.
- "Kabaddi struggles for greater recognition". 22 August 2021.
- "Pakistan Kabaddi Team | Latest News, Schedule, and Updates".
- https://www.sports.gov.pk/Detail/NGM2MWI3NjMtYTk3Mi00NjlmLWE1MWMtOTJhMGViY2E1MDAx
- "Pakistan defeat India, win Kabaddi World Cup for the first time". 16 February 2020.
- AFP, Compiled by Dona Cherian, Web News Editor,Inputs from (2020-02-16). "Look: Pakistan beat arch rivals India in kabaddi World Cup". Gulf News: Latest UAE news, Dubai news, Business, travel news, Dubai Gold rate, prayer time, cinema. Retrieved 2025-04-25. CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
- https://www.sports.gov.pk/Detail/NGM2MWI3NjMtYTk3Mi00NjlmLWE1MWMtOTJhMGViY2E1MDAx
