Sepak Takraw or Sepaktakraw is also known as the ‘Kick Volleyball’.

It is a team
sport that is commonly played among teams of two to four players on a court
resembling a badminton court. It is a combination of volleyball and footvolley as
the players play this sport using only their feet, knees, shoulders, chest and head to
touch the ball. When someone observes the sport for the first time it appears to
be a combination of volley ball (due to the presence of net) and soccer /
football (as players use their feet).
Sepak Takraw is governed internationally by the International Sepaktakraw
Federation (“ISTAF”) formed in 1988 that also conducts tournaments
worldwide. Sepak Takraw is known by different names in different regions. It is
known as Sepak Raga in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and
Singapore; Rago and Raga in Indonesia; Sipa in the Philippines; Chinlone in
Myanmar; Takraw in Thailand; Kataw in Laos; Sek Dai in Cambodia; Cuju in
China; Da Cau in Vietnam; Jegichagi in Korea and Kemari in Japan.
ORIGIN
The word ‘Sepak’ is of Malay origin used for ‘kick’ while the word ‘takraw’ is
of Thai origin that means ‘muzzle’ or ‘woven rattan ball’. Overall, the name is
known as Sepak Takraw which means “to kick a rattan ball”. This name was
finalized after a meet in Kuala Lumpur in 1960 between Malaysia and Thailand.
Moreover, in the past it was known as “Sepak Raga Jaring” in Malaysia, in which
the term ‘Jaring’ meant ‘net’ in Malay that was added to the traditional “Sepak
Raga” game by Hamid Mydin (recognized as the creator and founder of Sepak
Takraw) in Penang in 1945.
HISTORY
Sepak was originated in Malaysia about 500 years ago. It was mostly played by
the royal court in the 15th century. The game spread across Indonesia, where it
got popularized amongst people in the name of Sepak Raga around 16th century.
Later on, by 1940 the sport spread across Southeast Asia and the formation of
official rules and regulations took place.
The first official Sepak Takraw competition was held at a swim club in the
year 1945 in Penang. The teams which took part in the competition belonged to the
various villages of Penang. During this period, the game was known by the
name “Sepak Raga Jaring”.
The Malaysian Sepak Raga Federation was founded in 1960 at Penang and later
in 1965 it was included in South East Asia Peninsular Games. It was only after this
that the sport was named officially as Sepak Takraw.
OBJECTIVE
The main objective of the game is to kick the ball to the other side of the net but
within the boundary of the opponent’s team. One of the teams has to score more
points by causing their opponents to commit a fault to win the game.
PARTICIPANTS
Sepak Takraw is a popular sport in Southeast Asian countries and is slowly
spreading towards other parts of the world including
the European and American countries. The countries that take part actively in the
tournaments are from Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Korea, Japan, India,
Philippines, Brunei, USA and Pakistan.
EQUIPMENT
The equipment used in Sepak Takraw consists of net and the rattan ball. Apart
from these two; the other equipment used are the shoes and the protective
gears.
1) BALL
It is spherical in shape and is commonly made of synthetic fiber. Initially these
were made of rattan strips which have been replaced by the synthetic fiber. The
type of material and method used for construction of ball must match the ISTAF
criteria.
SPECIFICATIONS OF THE BALL:

 Sepak Takraw balls that are made without synthetic covering must
have 12 holes and 20 intersections.
 It must have a circumference measuring from 42 to 44 cm (16.5-17.3 in.)
for men and for women it is 43 to 45 cm (16.9-17.7 in.)
 The ball weighs 170-180 gram (6-6.3 oz.) for men and 150-160 gram (5.3-5.6
oz.) for women.
 The ball can be of single color or multi-color but it should not be in any color
that affects the performance of the players.
2) NET
The net used in the game is commonly made of fine cord or nylon with six to
eight centimeter mesh. It resembles volleyball net.
DIMENSIONS OF NET:

 Width - 0.7 m (2.29 ft.)

3) SHOES
The shoes worn in this game are light in weight and have flat soles. It has a good
grip on both indoor and outdoor surfaces and the insole makes it comfortable to
wear.
4) PROTECTIVE GEARS
These are ankle supportive bands that are used by players for providing
protection to the joints and they also use forehead bandanas in order to stop the
sweat from getting into the eyes.
PLAYING AREA
The Sepak Takraw playing court is quite similar to the volleyball court with
a flat, uniform and horizontal surface. The dimension of the court is similar to
that of doubles badminton.
DIMENSION OF PLAYING COURT:

 Playing zone area is of 13.4 by 6.1 meters (44 ft. × 20 ft.) free from all
the hurdles up to the height of 8 meters (26 ft.) measured from the floor
surface (Note: sand and grass court is not preferred).
 The width of the lines bounding the court should not to be more than 4
centimeters (1.6 in.) as measured and is drawn inwards from the edge of
the court measurements.
 All the boundary lines should be marked at least 3 meters (9.8 ft.) far from
all obstructions.
 The Center Line - The inside line (Center line) of 2 centimeter (0.79 in.)
should be drawn equally separating the right and left court.
 The Quarter Circle - At the corner of the center line, the quarter circle shall
be drawn from the sideline to the middle line with a range of 0.9 meters (2
ft. 11 in.) estimated and drawn outwards from the edge of the 0.9 m radius.
 The Service Circle - The service circle of 0.3 m is drawn on the left and the
right court, the focal point of which is 2.45 m from the back line of the court
and 3.05 m from the sidelines, the 0.04 m line will be estimated and drawn
outward from the edge of the 0.3 m radius.
GAME PLAY
The game of Sepak Takraw is played between two teams that are known as Regu.
There are two types of Sepak Takraw events:
1) Regu- Three players in each team.
2) Doubles Regu - Each team has two players.
SERVER
The main job of the server or Tekong is to serve the ball. The server usually hits
the ball across the net with great speed making it difficult for the opponent
players to defend.
STRIKER
The striker or killer is the main person to execute the volleys in to opponent side
with high speed. When the striker does not possess the ball, he usually tries
to block high kicks from the opponent side.
FEEDER
The third player is the feeder who has the maximum control over the ball during
the match. The main job of the feeder is to set the ball in a suitable way for the
striker to kick hard such that it passes through the net.
Usually the Server stands in the back whereas the striker and the feeder take the
front left side and the front right side.
SHOTS AND TECHNIQUES
This game is full of quickness and agility and requires good precision for different
shots based on the situation and as per the player requirements. The player as a
striker plays offensive shots where as a feeder defends the shot first in order to set
it for the striker.
SHOTS PLAYED BY PLAYERS ARE:
INSIDE KICK
An inside kick is the most basic form of kick that is used to control the ball. In this
shot, the players have to stand with their feet apart and then
by bending the supporting leg a little, they need to hit the ball in upward direction
using the inside of the other leg.
OUTSIDE KICK
An outside kick is used as a defensive shot and is played while defending a serve
from the opponent side. During this shot the players try to raise the knee as high
as possible.
HEADER
The header shot in this game is played using the forehead to hit the ball and make
it fly. This shot is performed only when the ball height is too high that the shot
cannnot be performed using their legs. This shot is played in both striking and
serving.
HORSE KICK SERVE
This is a difficult shot to perform. In this, the player needs to perform a high
kick and for that the player needs to use his foot to hit the ball in backward
direction over his shoulder or head.
SUNBACK SPIKE
This shot is quite similar to the Horse Kick Serve. The only difference is that the
shot is performed with a jump. In this shot, the player has to jump on one of the
leg while using the other to hit the ball.
ROLL SPIKE
One of the toughest and most stylish shot where the player kicks the ball
in backward direction over his shoulders or head before finishing the kick and
touching the ground.