New Delhi, Aug 10 (IANS): Telugu Yodhas, the GMR Group-owned franchise on Wednesday announced attacker Prajwal KH as the captain and all-rounder Pratik Waikar as the vice-captain of the team for the inaugural edition of the Ultimate Kho Kho.

The Ultimate Kho Kho -- the professional Kho Kho league of the Kho Kho Federation of India -- will kick off its inaugural season on August 14 at the Shri Chhatrapati Shivaji Sports Complex in Pune.

Telugu Yoddhas completed their player drafts for the inaugural season last month, drafting 22 top Kho Kho players from across India.

The 25-year-old Karnataka-born Prajwal KH is one of the leading attackers for Telugu Yoddhas. An engineer by education, Prajwal took on Kho Kho as a hobby in school which eventually became his passion and profession.

He has led his state team Karnataka to win the gold medal as a captain. Some other notable feats for Prajwal in his Kho Kho career so far include a gold medal in 2013-14 Federation Cup and a third-place finish for his state team in the 54th Senior Nationals last year.

On the other hand, Pratik Waikar, the 30 year old International Kho Kho player from the state of Maharashtra is one of the most decorated athletes in the Telugu Yoddhas squad.

Pratik, a Bsc Computer Science & MBA by education is an all-rounder and took to the sport at the age of 9. He has been a recipient of Maharashtra's Chhatrapati Sambhaji Raje Award in 2021.The player has been a part of Team India at many prominent International tournaments and has played a pivotal role for the national kho kho team winning Gold in SAF Games 2016.

The Telugu Yoddhas will be coached by Sumit Bhatia who played an important role in having helped the Indian women's team win gold medal at the 3rd Asian Kho Kho Championship in 2016. Some other big names who are a part of the Telugu Yoddhas squad are Rohan Shingade, Sudarshan and Arun SA.

The Telugu Yoddhas will start their campaign on the inaugural day of UKK on August 14, against Chennai Quick Guns.