Kho kho

Kho kho or kho-kho is a traditional Indian sport that dates back to ancient India.[1][2] It is the second most popular traditional tag game in the Indian subcontinent after kabaddi.[3] Kho kho is played on a rectangular court with a central lane connecting two poles which are at either end of the court. During the game, nine players from the chasing team (attacking team) are on the field, with eight of them sitting (crouched) in the central lane, while three runners from the defending team run around the court and try to avoid being touched.[2] Each sitting player on the chasing team faces the opposite direction of their adjacent teammates.

Kho kho
Kho kho playing in Govt middle school, Nallambal, Karaikal
First playedIndia
Characteristics
Contactpermitted
Team members12 players per side, 9 in the field and 3 extra
EquipmentNone (except the two poles on the court)
Presence
Country or regionIndian subcontinent

At any time, one player on the chasing team (the 'active chaser'/'attacker') may run around the court to attempt to tag (touch) members of the defending team, with one point scored per tag, and each tagged defender required to leave the field; however, the active chaser cannot cross the central lane to access the other half of the field, and can only run in the direction (facing either pole) they took their first step in. The chasing team can get around these restrictions if the active chaser either switches roles with a sitting teammate (by touching them on the back while saying "Kho") who is facing the other half of the court and therefore has access to it, or runs to either pole and then switches direction/half. Each team has two turns to score and two turns to defend, with each turn lasting nine minutes. The team that scores the most points by the end of the game wins.[4]

The sport is widely played across South Asia, and also has a strong presence in the regions outside South Asia, such as South Africa and England. It is played most often by school children in India and Pakistan and is a competitive game.[5] The first league of its kind called Ultimate Kho Kho was unveiled in India in August 2022.[6]

Etymology

The name comes from Marathi: खोखो (khō-khō),[7] the word kho is an onomatopoeia of the sound invoked while playing the game.[8]

History

Certain aspects of kho-kho's gameplay may have been mentioned in the Mahabharata. In pre-modern times, it is believed that a version of kho-kho known as Rathera was played on chariots (rath meaning "chariot" in Hindi). The modern form of the game was invented in 1914, with its rules and formalised structure being given by Pune's Deccan Gymkhana club. Kho-kho was demonstrated at the 1936 Berlin Olympics alongside other traditional Indian games. It is now a medal sport in the South Asian Games, having been played in the 2016 edition.[4]

In July 2022, the player draft for Ultimate Kho Kho was completed, which is a six-team franchise-based Indian Kho Kho tournament. Its inaugural season ran from August 14 to September 4, 2022.[9]

Rules

The field is 27 by 16 metres (89 by 52 ft), with a distance of 24 metres (79 ft) between the two poles, and the central lane having a width of 30 centimetres (12 in). Each of the cross lanes (which pass through the sitting areas that the chasers sit in, and go from one side of the court to the other) has a width of 35 centimetres (14 in). There are 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in)-long extensions of the court behind each of the poles known as "free zones", in which there are no restrictions on chasers' movements.[4][10]

The chasing team scores points each time a defender is ruled "out", which happens when a chaser tags a defender without breaking any rules, or when a defender steps out of the court.[11]

Variations

In one variation of kho-kho, a team is no longer allowed to chase once it has tagged all the players on the other team. The team that tags all of its opponents in the shortest amount of time wins.[12]

Competitions

Ultimate Kho Kho

Ultimate Kho Kho (UKK) is an Indian kho kho competition, and its first season took place in 2022. Many of the rules of kho kho are changed in this league:

  • Only seven players from the chasing team are on the field.[13][14][15]
  • The playing field is only 22 meters long and 16 meters wide.[13][14][15]
  • Two points are scored for a regular tag, and three points are scored if a tag is made while a chaser is either fully outstretched and diving (known as a "Sky Dive") or touching a pole ("Pole Dive").[13][14][15]
  • The defending team scores two bonus points if any batch (group) of three defenders can avoid being eliminated for two and a half minutes, and two additional points for every 30 seconds afterward.[13][14][15]
  • One chasing player (known as the wazir) may run in any direction when acting as the active chaser.[16][17][18]
  • The chasing team can take a powerplay in each of their chasing turns during which they have two wazirs. Each powerplay lasts until all three defenders in the current group are out.[13][14][15]
  • Each team's turn to score/defend lasts 7 minutes.[16][17][18]
  • Tiebreaker (known as a "Minimum Chase"): Each team gets one additional turn to score, and the team that scores its first point the fastest wins.[10]

See also
  • Atya patya

References
  1. Hard Bound Lab Manual Health and Physical Education, p. 41
  2. "kho-kho | Indian sport | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  3. Peter A Hastie (2010). Student-Designed Games: Strategies for Promoting Creativity, Cooperation, and Skill Development. Human Kinetics. p. 52. ISBN 978-0-7360-8590-8.
  4. Nag, Utathya (24 June 2022). "Kho Kho, a kabaddi-like sport linked with Indian epic Mahabharata - know all about it". Olympics.com
  5. ahmed, usman (14 August 2011). "Trip down memory lane: The games we play…". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
  6. Scroll Staff. "Ultimate Kho Kho: Squads, format, fixtures – all you need to know about latest Indian sports league". Scroll.in. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  7. "kho-kho". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 25 October 2020.
  8. Molesworth, J. T. (James Thomas) (1857). "A dictionary, Marathi and English. 2d ed., rev. and enl". dsal.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  9. "143 players picked in the Ultimate Kho Kho Season 1 players draft". TimesNow. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  10. "Ultimate Kho Kho: Rules and Regulations". Google Docs. Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  11. Chhabria, Vinay. "Scoring, fouls & more - All the rules of Kho Kho you need to know before Ultimate Kho Kho 2022". www.sportskeeda.com. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  12. "Kho Kho: How to Play and Rules". Gone Outdoors | Your Adventure Awaits. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  13. Chhabria, Vinay. "Scoring, fouls & more - All the rules of Kho Kho you need to know before Ultimate Kho Kho 2022". www.sportskeeda.com. Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  14. Scroll Staff. "Ultimate Kho Kho: Squads, format, fixtures – all you need to know about latest Indian sports league". Scroll.in. Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  15. Sharma, Avinash (14 August 2022). "Ultimate Kho Kho 2022: Revamped format, changed mat dimensions, tickets; all you need to know". MyKhel. Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  16. Scroll Staff. "Ultimate Kho Kho: Shorter duration, more points for acrobatic tags among new rules for the league". Scroll.in. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  17. Understanding The Game Play - KHO-KHO, retrieved 15 July 2022
  18. "Ultimate Kho Kho Rules | Update New rules of Kho Kho". KHO KHO. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
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