Basketball in depth by Urvashi Kataria

Basketball is one of the most followed sport across the world but sadly in India other sports have taken the charm away from it. So is the case in our own college (University College of Engg.) where the sports culture is missing. But this year it was encouraging to see our college field its first ever Girls basketball team thanks to Ritu Chittora, Sports Secretary, Brijesh Sir , the mentor & Rahul Raina, the convenor. But the most important person I believe whose resolute efforts made it happen was Urvashi Kataria, the captain of the team who brought the team together and inspired them to play well. Though the team is still amateur but I believe the stage is set in days to come where UCE will be a sporting college.
                           This year the first ever girls volleyball team was also formed under the leadership of Princy Sharma which is the most followed game in UCE. Incidentally both Urvashi and Princy have played the nationals. Talking about other sports Table Tennis and Badminton have also attracted loads of students. The fact is that we have always lacked the competitive spirit in sports and thats why we have never been able to become a sporting college. But now with the new brigade of students the change i the air is but obvious.
                            Here is an article by Urvashi Kataria which somehow missed the college magazine, showing our orthodox mentality about sports in the college. But I hope we shall encourage sports in the college and people who want to write about it. Lets make better individuals from ourselves.

Basketball, a game of recent origin was invented by Dr. James Naismith of USA in 1891 at Springfield College to provide as a sport that can be played indoors during winters. It had a very interesting start…I too had!!
Today, this game holds an important place in my life. This game alone taught me the way to live. Actually, it changed me till inside. Thank you would be a very small word for this game to express my gratitude towards it. What I am today, could not have been the same if I had been remained a book freak throughout my school life. Academics are important, but incomplete without sports.

The start of my journey:

I was 14 when I started playing. My friends and I used to watch other students play which then developed the same urge in us. Our team had a strict coach, strictness was first and foremost point. We were trained at a level to go for a fair game. My love for this game has a great contribution of our coach who insisted on us to be fair, play well, then win and then show them what the real game means.

I hold a small suggestion for those who only read and study; involving a game in your life makes your study more interesting. You study with a zeal and side by side, your fitness is also maintained. There is a life apart from academics also, which when given a seasoning of a game or any other activity, gets refined. For playing and moreover, enjoying a game, dedication from heart is required.

During our school days, we used to have early morning practice sessions, I was the one who daily reported first in court. My teammates and I started the best part of the day, the practice session, by running non stop 10-15 rounds of court followed by conditioning. A major problem we used to face was lack of players.

My most favourite part of this game is dribbling. There are a variety of dribbling stances like cross over dribble, low dribble, high dribble etc. I am the shooter of my team, or more aptly, 3-point shooter. It is a slight difficult shot because it requires comparatively more power as it is taken from a distance of more than 6.25 m from the ring. My favourite shot is lay-up shot which is a shot at the basket by a dribbler by taking off on one foot using a high jump action and full extension of arm to place the ball directly or indirectly into the basket.
Even the pain which we have sometimes after our practice session gives us a sigh of relief to us. 

It gives the feeling that Yes, you did something. The most joyous moment of my basketball journey was then when two of my team members including me were selected for State Level Tournaments but unfortunately could not go. But no issues, history was repeated and next time we won and we were again selected. This time, we vowed that let anything happen, we will definitely participate, and then finally we reached the destination on 24 Sept’10 and played the best matches of our life there.

When I came in 12th, I was not able to play because of studies, so I thought to continue it in college. But after entering here, I came to know that the court is located in boys hostel where girls do not go. So it is a disadvantage for those girls who play but can not continue. Therefore, a small suggestion from my side is to construct courts of various games for girls as well where beginners can also start a new journey.

Basketball at a public level:

I got a chance to get into a sport, But still there are some girls who have a far way to cover on. I wanted to professionalise my game but situations did not allowed. There is a common case for girls whose parents somewhere do not want their daughter to get into this field. The male-dominated society is also responsible for this mentality that girls are not made for sports. Sania Mirza, Krishna Punia, Sanya Nehwal are some names which contradict the above statement. It is the society, the public which can support them in rising or can cause a hindrance.

Basketball at National and International level:

Basketball is not a very famous sport in India where cricket is dominating. Our national game, Hockey, also does not stands upto the level of cricket. But steadily basketball is making its place among the youth. 

Many colleges and organisations in India organise basketball tournaments and championships. Here, Basketball Federation of India, formed in 1950, is the controlling body of this game and all other State Associations are affiliated to it. Some of the tournaments organised in India are National Basketball Championship for Men/Women, National Juniors Inter State Championship, National Boys Championship for CC Abraham Trophy, 3*3 tournaments held by NBA etc. 
Some of the Indian Basketball players who have reached fame are Geethu Anna Jose, Chaitanya Choudhary, Raghav Arora, Gauri Govardhan.
Some famous international teams are LA Lakers, Miami Heat, Golden State, LA Clippers.
Some international players are Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Lebron James.

OPPORTUNITIES:

There are a lot of opportunities in this game. First and foremost, one can become a player and can play for any organisation. Apart from that, the Head Coach is most sought after positions . He is responsible for managing the players in his team, setting a game plan and adjusting to the opposing team. They are always assisted by Assistant Coaches.
Scout serve a very important role . He is responsible for scouting other teams and learning more about their players and coach’s tendencies. He must understand the game perfectly and know a lot about assessing opposing players.
Trainer is responsible for meeting the pre game needs of players, such as stretching and conditioning. 

The athlete will work closely with trainer , slowly rehabbing back to full health at time of rehab. 
Some more positions are General Manager, /agent, Official etc.

CONCLUSION:

Academics for us is undoubtedly the chief aim but apart from that, there remains an irreplaceable place for a sport in our life which ends up being vacant for most of us. It teaches us to keep sportsmanship, team spirit, keep control on emotions, have a positive attitude towards everyone, have a controlled temper which proves as a boon for people. It teaches the meaning and importance of friendship that remains alive with us even outside the court throughout our lives… 

URVASHI KATARIA

I YEAR EC…