Maharashtra name Kho-Kho teams for national junior championship, Vasave and Lamkane captains

Maharashtra have named both their teams for the 45th national Kho-Kho championship for boys and girls, to be held in Vadodara, Gujarat, from November 21 to 25. Jitendra Vasave of Dharashiv will captain the boys' team, and Sneha Lamkane of Solapur has been given charge of the girls' team. The Maharashtra players will go into the national event aiming to win the gold medal.

Both teams were announced by Prof. Dr Chandrajeet Jadhav, general secretary of the Maharashtra Kho-Kho Association. After the selection, the association's president and Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Ajit Pawar, general secretary Prof. Dr Chandrajeet Jadhav, working president Sachin Godbole, treasurer Adv. Govind Sharma and other office-bearers congratulated the selected players and wished them well.

To prepare for the national event, the girls' training camp was held in Dharashiv and the boys' camp in Sangli. At these camps the players trained hard under experienced coaches. The emphasis was on physical fitness, speed, agility, skill in attack and defence, and team coordination.

The Maharashtra boys' team comprises Jitendra Vasave (captain), Hardaya Vasave and Sotya Valvi (all Dharashiv); Samarth Sawant, Arjun Sehjrao and Sachin Sahani (all Mumbai Suburban); Akbar Shaikh and Omkar Rajput (both Solapur); Samarth Chavan and Advait Bait (both Pune); Parth Devkate (Sangli); Tabrez Khan (Satara); Vinayak Bhange and Ashish Gautam (both Thane); and Gaurav Kudle (Ahilyanagar).

The reserves are Omkar Sawant (Thane), Bhimsing Vasave (Dharashiv) and Subodh Chavan (Pune). Pandharinath Badgujar of Dhule will be head coach. Sunil Chavan of Solapur will be assistant coach, and Mohan Rajput, also of Solapur, will be manager.

The Maharashtra girls' team comprises Sneha Lamkane (captain), Dhanashree Tamkhade, Vedika Tamkhade and Anushka Tamkhade (all Sangli); Dhanashree Kank, Praniti Jagdale and Guddi Rathod (all Thane); Maithili Pawar (Dharashiv); Kalyani Lamkane and Prajakta Bansode (both Solapur); Shweta Navale and Aparna Wardhe (both Pune); Nandini Sisodia (Dhule); Akshara Solanke (Satara); and Arya Bhatkar (Mumbai Suburban).

Jayashree Pawar (Nashik), Bhavramma Utagi (Sangli) and Swaranjali Thorat (Dharashiv) have been chosen as reserves. Abhijit Patil of Dharashiv will be head coach, Samruddhi Patil of Thane assistant coach and Sunita Rajput of Solapur manager.

General secretary Jadhav expressed confidence that both teams had prepared well at the training camps and that Maharashtra's performance at the national event would certainly be impressive. Sports fans will now watch whether the two teams succeed in their bid for gold in Vadodara.