Playing Method

The game is played by two teams: the patiwale (defenders) and the lonawale (raiders). The individual members are referred to as patiwala and lonawala.

The goal for patiwale is to obstruct lonawale when they proceed through each track. The patiwale stand in each square at the intersection. At first, a batch of four members of the lonawale team enter the field and have to race to the next rectangular sections (between the trenches), dodging the patiwale.

1. A coin toss decides whether each team plays as lonawale or patiwale. The referee starts the game by blowing a whistle.
2. Eight players from the patiwale team take their positions in each intersection formed by a trench and the surpati, one on each intersection facing the front trench. (Each of the trenches, excluding the front trench, is consecutively labelled as the first, second, … up to the last one eighth.)
3. The patiwale stands in trenches to obstruct the lonawale players by tagging them out, thus preventing them from completing lona.
4. The surr (the lead) will stand at the front of the surpati, ready to cut the squares (to rush up to the second trench and return to the first rapidly). The patiwale cannot leave their trench during an innings and can only move horizontally in the designated trench.
5. When the game starts, the first batch of four players from the lonawale team enter the field and start from the front trench. Then the second batch of the remaining four players and the trailer (the last player remaining after two batches) enter. The trailer enters the court from the trench where the first player of the second batch was tagged out.
6. The lonawale players try to cross as many trenches as possible during the innings. They score one point for crossing each trench. The goal is to return to the front trench after reaching the back trench. A successful return is called scoring a lona.
7. The lonawala players moving from the front trench to the last are known as up players, and the players returning from the last trench to the front are called down players. Lonawala players can move either to the right or the left half of the court while moving up and down.
8. The surr can’t touch the lonawale without cutting the square. While the surr cuts the square, most of the players from the lonawale team reach the third trench.
9. At such a time, the sur obstructs the players by preventing them with the help of the third patiwala. It is known as making kondi (creating a ring/trap). Such a type of kondi can occur at any trench any time.
10. There are various skills and tactics like dodging, pretending, falling and jumping to break the trap created by the patiwale. Some players try to reach lonapati while in the third trench.
11. The patiwale can hinder the lonawale by making a kondi and try to tag them out by touching them. Thus, if the team of lonawale is all out without getting lona, the patiwale now get an opportunity to play as lonawale.
12. A player who has crossed all the trenches is said to have achieved the lona.

After crossing all the trenches up to the last trench, when a lonawala reaches behind the last patiwala who is facing the front trench, he or she utters the word tond loudly and clearly, addressing the patiwala. Immediately upon hearing this call, the patiwala turns around and faces the back trench to obstruct the lonawala proceeding back towards the front trench. This action is called giving tond. 

So, the last patiwala now turns around and faces the direction for tagging the lonawala would now be towards the front trench. 

As soon as lona is scored by one player, that is, all the trenches are crossed, the referee announces the same. On such an announcement, all the lonawala who have not been tagged out must go to the front trench, and the game starts again. The duration of time for the innings is 7 minutes only.

Scoring

1. The team of lonawale scores one point for each trench crossed by every player while playing up or down, including the first trench. So, when lona is achieved, the team scores 18 points in total, as each trench is crossed twice.
2. During the innings, if lona is left incomplete, the players get as many points as the number of trenches they have crossed. The team that scores more points and more lona in total after the three matches wins the game.
3. If there is a tie in a match, play continues for 60 seconds for each team with one batch of four players. The team that scores more points in the given period is declared the winner.

Rules

1. If surr does not cut the squares correctly, she gets the chance to cut the squares again but loses the chance after surr crosses the third trench.
2. Surr, while tagging a patiwala out, can extend her foot within the lines of the trench, go up and down and change the direction as needed. Only hand touch is allowed as a form of tagging, and the surr can tag the left-side lonawalas only with the left hand and the right-side players with the right hand.
3. Lonawala players can move through the right and left half of the court while proceeding up and down but cannot go reverse once the trench is crossed.
4. Fouling
   1. If an up player crosses a trench without a down player obtaining tond, the down player has committed a foul.
   2. If a down player, while going down, crosses a trench without obtaining tond, the down player has committed a foul.
   3. If any player goes out of the boundary or the patiwale players leave their assigned trench, a foul has been committed
5. The lonawala in the ring (three players in the same court) must have both their feet entirely within the boundaries of the ring and sidelines. They must not go out of the lines while crossing the central trench, the trenches of the ring and the previous trench.
6. Lonawala cannot be tagged when they are just standing or passing the line or pretending to cross. Tagging is only allowed when a player actually passes the line.                 
7. When lonawala players have completely crossed a trench, they will not enter the court of the trench which has already been crossed.
8. A patiwala and the surr can both tag lonawale out from either side of the trench (right or left), while they are trying to cross the trench, whether they are an up player or a down player. But the patiwala cannot tag opponents if they have gone into the back trench; they cannot turn back and tag lonawala in the front.
9. The lonawale players cannot step on any of the trench lines or run alongside another passing player.
10. A player who has scored a lona and another active lonawala player cannot stay in the same rectangle.
11. A patiwala cannot fall and tag, fall after tagging or touch the ground with their hands after successful tagging.
12. If patiwale step out of their line of defence, they cannot tag any lonawala.
13. If a match is not completed for any reason, it will be continued further on another occasion, and the scores of completed innings of each team will be counted.
14. Any loss in time during the game will be compensated.  If the game is tied, 5 minutes is given to each team to play as lonawala, as a tie-breaker.