Carrom is, without a doubt, one of the most popular games in India. Not much is known about the game’s exact origins, but what has been established so far is that carrom does indeed have its roots in South Asia. There are possibilities that the game may have originated in India roughly around the eighteenth century. Different names in different countries know the game, and as expected, there are variations of the game across cultures. In turn, there are different rules and different standards in different regions. Carrom became popular in the United Kingdom and the other countries of the Commonwealth at the beginning of the 20th century.
Carrom is a game that can be played just about anywhere. The game is very commonly played in India and is played by families, school and college friends, and work colleagues, and is often played in social gatherings and events. In India and Sri Lanka, official federations of carrom clubs exist, and these federations sponsor carrom tournaments, and prizes too are awarded to winners of these tournaments. In India, state-level carrom competitions have been held since the early 20th century, and by the late 1950s, both India and Sri Lanka had their official federations.
Carrom gained tremendous popularity among the masses after the First World War. As of today, carrom is played in several countries outside India. Numerous international competitions are held in various countries, including the prestigious Carrom World Cup and a European Carrom Cup. The evolution of technology and the development of high-speed internet services worldwide have made it possible for people to play carrom and earn money online today. It is just as fun as playing the game on an actual board!
In this blog, we bring to you some of the best carrom players worldwide. Read on and find out about them!
A. Maria Irudayam
The legendary carrom champion of India, A. Maria Irudayam, was born in Chennai in 1956. He is well known and widely respected for having won the Indian National Championship nine times, and he has also been the winner of the World Carrom Championship twice. A carrom player par excellence, he has won numerous carrom competitions in India and abroad. The Government of India awarded him the Arjuna Award in 1996 in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the game of carrom. Some of the notable tournaments that A. Maria Irudayam has won include the ICF Cup in 1989 and 1997, the SAARC Carrom Championship in 1997, 1998, and 1999, and the US Open International Carrom Tournament in 1996.
S. Ilavazhagi
Coming from humble origins, S. Ilavazhagi is a player who hails from the state of Tamil Nadu. She was born in 1984, and she won the Indian National Carrom Championship in 2008, where she defeated former world champion Rashmi Kumari in the final. The same year, she participated in the World Carrom Championship and emerged as the winner. She also participated in the World Carrom Championship in 2012, where she was the runner-up. Today, she is a member of the Thiruvallur District Carrom Association.
Rashmi Kumari
Rashmi Kumari is a carrom player who hails from Bihar. She made her debut as a carrom player in 1992 and went on to win the World Carrom Championship twice in the years 2012 and 2014. Besides these victories, she has won the women’s titles in the National Carrom Championship of 17th Inter Institutions in Mumbai. Rashmi was felicitated no less than eleven times by the sports department of Bihar, and she was also awarded the Swami Vivekananda Youth Award in the year 1999.
Parmi Nirmala
Parmi Nirmala has been playing carrom since the year 1980. She has won carrom state championships seven times; she is the five-time winner of the Senior National Championship and four-time winner of the Federation Cup. She has won the All India LIC Championship eleven times. Additionally, she was also runner-up in the World Carrom Championship in 1995 and 2000. She is widely regarded as the queen of carrom and is recognised as a champion of the sport both nationally and internationally.
Chamil Cooray
Chamil Cooray, whose full name is Chamil Darshana Cooray Bulathsinghalage, is a Sri Lankan carrom player who has been representing his home country since the year 2004. He became the captain of his country’s men’s carrom team, which won the 2016 World Carrom Championship held at Birmingham in England. Chamil Cooray is also the only carrom player from any country to have won the Swiss World League title.
Nishantha Fernando
Nishantha Fernando is a carrom player from Sri Lanka who has become the most famous carrom player of all time in the country. He won the men’s singles in the Carrom World Championship in the year 2012, and this made him the first Sri Lankan to win the title, whereupon he was hailed as the national carrom champion in Sri Lanka. He was also an integral part of the team that participated in the Carrom World Championship in 2016, eventually winning the tournament.
K. Srinivas
Srinivas is a carrom champion who hails from Hyderabad in India. He was born in the year 1993 and is regarded as one of the best carrom players in the game’s history. Having participated in many carrom tournaments around the world, he has won several titles in men’s singles and doubles tournaments. Srinivas was the national carrom champion of India, and he won the 4th Carrom World Cup in the Maldives. Parmi Nirmala, the women’s national carrom champion, felicitated Srinivas after winning the men’s singles national championship.
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Conclusion
These are just some of the icons who have brought glory to carrom. There is no doubt that there are more carrom stars in the making as we speak, who will also join these prominent champions in the sport’s history books. And we are just as excited as you are!
