Does India have basketball teams for the South Asian Games next week or not?

The 2016 South Asian Games (SAG) will tip off in Guwahati and Shillong next week. The multi-sport festival will feature eight countries - the hosts India and all our South Asian neighbours - competing in 23 different sports. The Nabin Ch. Bordoloi AC Indoor Stadium, Sarusajai in Guwahati, host to the tournament's basketball tournament, is ready. Tikhor the baby Rhino, the SAG's official mascot, is ready. Hell, even our eternal rivals in all things Pakistan - a team with barely any international basketball exposure - is ready to 'conquer' us.

So it's time for India's basketball teams - the hosts and reigning silver medalists of SAG Basketball - to be fired up for this massive tournament, right?

Not exactly.

As many of you who closely follow Indian basketball may already know, there is a major rift between two parties competing for the helm of the Basketball Federation of India (BFI). The side supported by FIBA and led by President K. Govindraj - Team Govindraj - has been responsible for hosting India's recent national championships and sending teams abroad for international tournaments. But the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) hasn't recognized Team Govindraj after appeals by the competing group led by President Poonam Mahajan: Team Mahajan. All this confusion has meant that several Indian players have been forced to choose their loyalties between one side or the other and robbed Indian basketball of its necessary cohesion.

And this is where the past drama meets the present challenge. The IOA, in consultation with the Government of India, are behind the organizing and executive committee for the planning and management of the 2016 South Asian Games. But because of the broken relationship between the IOA and the BFI, there is still confusion about the trials and formation of the Indian basketball teams (at the time of writing) in the Men's or Women's divisions for the SAG. The Games flag off in Guwahati on February 5 and the basketball tournament will be held from February 11-16th. While other teams prepare, India continues its habit of cutting it too close.

The IOA announced that they will be holding trials for the Indian teams on Saturday, January 30th, at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in New Delhi. But the BFI's Team Govindraj have 'shot off a warning' at the IOA for interfering with the basketball selection trials, which are being held by the IOA outside of their legal jurisdiction.

Yesterday, SportStar published a damning article about how some of India's top players like Kerala's Jeena PS and Varanasi's Vishesh Bhriguvanshi continued to be confused about selection trials for the upcoming tournament just a week before it's set to begin.

“We had the tickets but we were in two minds for a few hours, whether to go or not,” said [Jeena PS], the 22-year-old power forward from Thiruvananthapuram. “Anyway, we will decide whether or not to take part in the trials once we reach New Delhi.”
Hundreds of miles away, Indian men’s captain Vishesh Bhiruguvanshi has similar worries about the ‘trials’.
“I’m on the train to Varanasi, my home. Tomorrow, we will get to know whether we have to go for the trials or not,” said the Indian skipper over phone.
The South Asian Games begin in Guwahati and Shillong on February 5 but while teams such as Pakistan and Maldives are getting ready for the basketball event in Guwahati, shockingly, India has not even selected their men’s and women’s squads yet!
With faction fighting virtually breaking up the Basketball Federation of India (BFI), relations between the hoop game’s national body and the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) have soured to dismal levels.

“The IOA is not eligible to conduct any basketball event as per the Karnataka High Court Stay Order dated October 14, 2015. Any unit which sends its players will be sending them at their own risk,” K. Govindaraj, the President of the BFI, has said in a letter sent to the association’s affiliated units.

“If you go by logic and rules, the federation has to conduct the event. The IOA does not have any right to interfere in the federation’s activities. The IOA comes under the IOC Charter, if they follow the IOC Charter, when an international federation recognises any national federation, it is the duty of the IOA to recognise and follow the procedures,” he said.
“But now, I don’t know… the Government and the IOA are handling it. The (world body) FIBA will interfere at the appropriate time.”
“We have already selected our teams, and if it (basketball at the Games) happens, we will field our players. If it doesn’t happen, it is up to the Government. We just concluded our National Championship (ended in Mysuru on Jan. 16), the team was finalised yesterday and the camp will start in Mangalore on Monday,” he said.

Players from units like ONGC and Railways are being coerced by their employers to attend the trials in Delhi, but they also have conflicting information from the BFI. Govindraj claimed to SportStar that Team India trials have already been concluded and the team chosen, but there has been no word released (yet) of which players will actually be representing India at the SAG next week.

So what is actually happening here? Will Team India be the one that met at camp by the BFI in Mangalore? Or will it be the team chosen after the trials in New Delhi?

Does India have basketball teams for the South Asian Games next week or not? Whenever there are two answers to a question like this, it is likely that there are probably no answers at all.

Six years ago, India were disappointed when they lost in the finals of the 2010 SAG in Dhaka to Afghanistan and had to settle for the silver medals. The chance for redemption for India has come a little late (the 2016 SAG were postponed after IOA suspension last year!), but now, it's finally here. But it seems like, rather than fielding a team to defeat Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and others, we are busier finding ways to defeat each other. Time is running out: hopefully the likes of Jeena, Bhriguvanshi, and the rest find clarity in their plans. If the organizers and bureaucrats can't make India proud, at least allow our athletes to do so. Or the only Indian playing basketball in Guwahati will be Tikhor the rhino.

India qualify for 2013 FIBA Asia Championship by winning SABA Zone Qualifiers

India started off as favourites to emerge as victors from the South Asian Basketball Association (SABA) Zone Qualifiers against Nepal and Afghanistan this week, and anything less than victory would've been crushing dissapointment. Still, basketball games are not won on expectations alone, and the 'Young Cagers' - under the tutelage of new Head Coach Scott Flemming - still had to go out and get the job done. They did that all right, winning both their games in comfortable fashion at the Thyagraj Stadium in New Delhi from June 2-4. Thus, they sealed their qualification for the 2013 FIBA Asia Basketball Championship for Men and will be headed to Manila (Phillipines) for Asia's biggest basketball tournament in August.

Flemming, who was cautiously optimistic of India's chances, must be glad to see that he has had a successful start to his coaching campaign. After several months at camp, Flemming chose a 12-man roster that featured a healthy mix of experience and youth, and a whole lotta size, going into these qualifiers. Size hasn't always exactly been India's strength in international basketball fixtures, but with a flux of talented young bigs coming into the system, it seems that the future is a little brighter (and bigger).

India kicked off the three-team qualifying tournament against Nepal on June 2nd, in what turned out to be a stroll in the park. Without the size to match India's big men and the skill to keep up with their offense, Nepal fell behind after a close start and were never in the game again. At 13-8, it seemed Nepal may stick around in the contest, but India ended any chance of an upset as they scored 24 consecutive points. They held on to a mammoth 61-13 lead at halftime before pulling the breaks on their offense a little in the second period. Still, it was no mercy for the northern neighbours as India were able to give meaningful minutes to all 12 players and finish the evening with a 109-26 victory. Six Indians scored in double digits to showcase a balanced offense, with Punjabi big man Amrit Pal Singh leading the way with 17.

Nepal couldn't catch a break against Afghanistan the very next day, either. The Afghanis used their immense height and athleticism advantage to again break out a big lead and cruise to a 78-20 win.

This set up the expected do-or-die matchup between India and Afghanistan on June 4th, with the winner earning the right to represent the SABA Zone in the 27th FIBA Asia Championship from August 1-11, 2013. Although India were favoured, a victory was by no means guaranteed. Three years ago, Afghanistan famously defeated India in the South Asia Games basketball final, and India avenged the loss with a close but ugly victory later in that year at the Asian Games. Flemming had spoken earlier about the threat that Afghanistan possessed, and didn't want India to take them lightly.

Photo Credit: Gopalakrishnan R.

They didn't: India took an 18-9 lead in the first quarter and maintained a double digit advantage throughout. Although they couldn't score too easily against Afghanistan's bigs, they were still able to dominate the run of play. Flemming had been working hard in improving India's team defense, and the results of the hard work were on full display as they did a good job in disrupting Afghanistan's offensive flow. India had a comfortable 16 point lead at halftime and ended up winning the game 64-46. Going to their young bigs - Amrit Pal Singh and Amjyot Singh - proved fruitful to India. Point guard Joginder Singh also had a nice game and team captain Vishesh Bhriguvanshi had his usual all round performance despite a struggle shooting on the floor.

14 of total 16 teams have now punched in their tickets for Philippines and now await the tournament draw. The tournament was initially slated to be held in Lebanon, but the venue was changed due to security concerns from the Syrian civil war and the Middle East in general. India finished a disappointing 14th place in the 2011 FIBA ABC in Wuhan (China). With a better-looking talent pool and more concentrated efforts to improve, the Men have to aim for much greater heights. China will be defending their title, while Jordan, Korea, Iran, and hosts Philippines will hope to upset Asia's strongest side.

For now, let's celebrate India's qualification. The road ahead is only going to get tougher for Flemming and his team: we hope that they can build upon this start to give Asia's finest squads a shock or too in Manila.

A special shoutout to Gopalakrishnan R., a basketball writer with admirable passion for Indian hoops, who was on scene throughout the tournament and provided a comprehensive breakdown of all the games. Gopal did excellent live play-by-play commentary of the games and is also to be credited for the photograph above!

India set to play in FIBA Asia Championship SABA Qualifiers in New Delhi

Asia's most prestigious basketball event - the FIBA Asia Basketball Championship - is scheduled to be held this August in the Philippines. Under new coach Scott Flemming, India's 'Young Cagers' will be anxious to improve on their most recent performance at the Championship. But before they can be chosen amongst the 16 squads to compete in Manila, they first have to defeat their South Asia neighbours in a qualifying competition back home. The South Asian Basketball Association (SABA) Zone Qualifiers for the 2013 FIBA Asia Basketball Championship for Men are set to be held at the Thyagraj Stadium in New Delhi from June 2-4.

India, who are the most dominant squad in the SABA Zone, will have to compete against Afghanistan and Nepal in the qualifiers this year.

This will be the first major international challenge for India's squad under Coach Flemming, who was named Head Coach of the Men's team in September 2012 after spending the past two years as an assistant coach with the Texas Legends of the NBDL.

Here is India's 12-man roster for the SABA Qualifiers:

Joginder Singh - PG - 5-11 (Delhi)
Sambhaji Kadam - PG - 5-10 (Pune)
Vishesh Bhriguvanshi - G - 6-2 (Uttarakhand)
Narender Kumar Grewal - SF - 6-3 (Delhi)
Vinay Kaushik - G - 6-2 (Delhi)
Basil Phillip - G - 6-1 (Kerala)
Loveneet Singh - PG - 5-11 (Ludhiana)
Ranbir Singh - G - 6-3 - (Punjab)
Yadwinder Singh - F - 6-6 (Uttarakhand)
Amjyot Singh Gill - F - 6-9 (Tamil Nadu)
Rikin Pethani - F/C - 6-9 (Tamil Nadu)
Amrit Pal Singh - C - 6-11 (Uttarakhand)

The usual big names are there with the squad. Bhriguvanshi and Yadwinder Singh, teammates in ONGC, have been one of India's biggest stars over the past few years. Amjyot Singh and Amrit Pal Singh are two rising stars, both young bigs who can be the cornerstone of India's future. Loveneet Singh is another young star coming fresh out of a silver-medal performance at the U18 FIBA Asia 3x3 Championship. Sambhaji Kadam is the team's oldest player and the veteran point guard will be the team's leader in the locker-room. India's young phenom Satnamn Singh Bhamara, the 7 footed 17-year-old Center, will skip the qualifiers because of his schedule at the IMG Academy in Florida.

Here is the schedule of games at the SABA Qualifiers.

Participating Countries

1. Afghanistan
2. India
3. Nepal

Fixtures

June 2 - 4:00 PM - India vs. Nepal
June 3 - 6:00 PM - Nepal vs. Afghanistan
June 4 - 6:00 PM - Afghanistan vs. India

Coach Flemming feels cautiously optimistic about India's chances over the two games. Speaking on the team's preparations, he said, "I believe we have really improved as a team during our two training camps this year. We haven't arrived yet but our players our buying into our system. We have particularly focused on the defensive end. We have had great practices but we haven't been game tested except for a few scrimmages."

"Although we won't take anyone lightly it looks as though Afghanistan will be our biggest challenge in the SABA Qualifier. They beat our Indian team in recent years and return most of the same players. We have set some longer term goals and I am confident we will continue to improve in the days ahead."

If India win the tournament, they will win SABA's only berth in the final lineup of teams at the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship, which will be held from August 1-11, 2013. India finished 14th at the 2011 FIBA Asia Championship in Wuhan (China).

3rd Asian Beach Games: India’s Women bag 3x3 basketball gold; Men finish 5th

It was a dream finish for India’s 3x3 Women’s basketball team who won a gold medal after defeating China in the Final 17-14 at the 3rd Asian Beach Games in Haiyang, China. It was an undefeated run by Indian eves who won all five of their games including a thrilling comeback victory over the hosts. Geethu Anna Jose and Anitha Paul Durai scored the crucial last points to give India the final victory.

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Indian Basketball Game Tape on YouTube

I'm a self-confessed nerd for watching basketball. I would watch it till my eyes are sore and then watch it a little more. No other factor in life has been able to wake me up consistently on early mornings except for early morning live basketball games.

Knowing that, imagine my joy when I discovered the DVDs of all of India's Men and Women's teams' matches at the 2010 Asian Games in China! This was the first time that India had participated in the basketball tournament of the games since 1982, back when India hosted the Games. The teams didn't really return with a record to write home about (1-5 for the Men, 0-3 for the Women), but hey - at least they were there, participating against the best in Asia, playing in the awesome basketball courts in Guangzhou at such a large stage.

So I set off on a mission to burn and upload all of the games available on the Basketball Federation of India's (BFI) new YouTube channel. Half a dozen games are already up on this channel and I will be uploading a few more over the next few days.

As a bonus, I also ended up spending hours and hours watching the games. I have proudly become a hermit, churning out DVD after DVD of this historical tournament for Indian basketball. Yes, the game tapes are flawed: there is no commentary, the camera usually stays in one position, and apart from a couple of games, there are no scores/timings on the side of the screen. It is almost like watching the games in person, but without any of the good experiences of watching it in person.

Still, the games make for interesting viewing. It was fun watching the likes of Vishesh Bhriguvanshi, Jagdeep Singh, Yadivinder Singh, Hareesh Koroth, and up and coming youngsters such as Dishant Shah battle out against Qatar, Chinese Taipei, Iran, Japan, Afghanistan, and Philippines. The Afghanistan game was the only one that the Men's team won, which was also a pre-qualifier to make it into the rest of the tournament. The team was led by American coach Bill Harris for this tournament. I was especially impressed by Vishesh's ever-evolving game: the young Indian captain shows a versatility between three positions and his all-round ability to score, create, rebound, and lead the team by example.

In the Women's tapes, the likes of Geethu Anna Jose, Akanksha Singh, Anitha P., Harjeet Kaur, and Prashanti Singh show up playing against some tough Asian talent. Led in this competition by former WNBA player Tamika Raymond, the Indian dames struck unlucky with the draw, as their first two games were against Asia's finest - China and South Korea - the two teams who went on to face each other in the Final. India had a close game against Thailand but couldn't hang on in the 4th quarter against them. The Thailand game is also a great exhibition of the talents of Geethu. A legendary Center for India, Geethu's game is a feast for the eyes of any basketball lover. She is a glutton for scoring through a variety of moves in the low post, is a good rebounder of the basketball, and her most underrated skill might be her inside passing, through which she was able to make her teammates better, too.

Once again, even though we lost a lot, and you will see more than good for India in these tapes, the attendance at the Asian Games was still a crucial step for development of basketball in India. Plus, for aspiring ball players and fans of the game in India, this is a chance to watch and learn from the best in the country in action.

Are you excited yet? All you need is a bit of patience, maybe a set of headphones bumping your favourite music, and an average internet connection. Go and check out BFI's YouTube channel now! Over time, videos from other major basketball tournaments, if available, will be uploaded on the channel.

By the way: a short recap of the Asian Games basketball tournament and India's performances is available here. Hosts China won gold in both the Men's and Women's divisions.

China wins double gold at Asian Games; India goes winless

Hosts China stamped their dominance over basketball in Asia after winning double gold in both the Women's and Men's tournament at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou. China defeated the Republic of Korea in both divisions to clinch the title.

Nan Chen led a balanced attack for the Chinese Women on Thursday, November 25th with 17 points and 12 rebounds to overcome the Korean challenge, 70-64. All of China's starters scored in double digits as the hosts prevailed in the close game. Yeonha Beon scored a game-high 23 points in Korea's losing effort.

Women

China 70 (Nan Chen 17 pts 12 rebs, Xin Guan 14 pts, Fan Zhang 7 rebs) bt. Republic of Korea 64 (Yeonha Beon 23 pts, Jung Eun Park 14 pts, Mi Sun Lee 5 stls). Halftime Score:38-29

Japan came third in the women's competition after beating Chinese Taipei 73-61 in the bronze medal game.

In the Men's final, China sustained a close lead for the whole game and fought off Korea's comeback to win 77-71. Former NBA player Zhizhi Wang scored 20 points to lead a balanced effort for China. Donggeun Yang for Korea added 17 points for the losing team.

Men

China 77 (Zhizhi Wang 20 pts, Jinhui Ding 14 pts 8 rebs, Yue Sun 14 pts) bt. Republic of Korea 64 (Dongguen Yang 17 pts, Joo Sung Kim 15 pts, Sungmin Cho 15 pts). Halftime Score:43-37

Iran won the Men's bronze medal after beating Japan 74-66

The Indian teams did not have a successful competition after qualifying for Asian Games basketball after 28 years, as the Men and Women's teams suffered defeats in all their group stage match-ups.

The Indian Men's team had early success as the won their pre-qualification match-up against Afghanistan to enter the tournament's group stage. Trailing by eight points at half-time, a balanced effort from India's starters led to a succesful comeback victory 83-76. Jagdeep Singh led a balanced effort from the Indians with 22 points. Trideep Rai (18), Hareesh Koroth (17), and Yadwinder Singh (15) also chipped in with important contributions.

But India's five group games saw them fall to 0-5 against their opponents. Despite Hareesh Koroth's 24 points, India lost big to Qater, 97-48. Chinese Taipei played a high-scoring game against India which they won 93-66, as Jagdeep Singh again led India with 22 points. Jagdeep continued his strong play in the tough game against Iran next, scoring 24 points in a losing effort, where Iran won 78-63. Yadvinder Singh also added 17.

India had a promising start in their last two games, against the Philippines and Japan, but succumbed to late game fatigue at lost both. Philippines beat India 78-57 and Japan won 85-58.

In the Women's tournament, India were baptised by fired in their first game against a strong Chinese squad, who won big, 107-39. The Women continued to suffer in a tough draw, as their next game was against eventual semi-finalists Republic of Korea, who won 98-44. The Girls showed a much improved performance in their final game, as Geethu Anna Jose powered to 20 points and 12 rebounds against Thailand, still to lose a close game 62-54 in the tough fourth quarter.

Although the box scores might have shown a dismal performance for the Indian team, the truth was that both the Men and the Women showed glimpses of competitiveness in all their games, just to succumb to problems regarding fatigue. The Indian teams were just not fit enough to hang with Asia's best for 40 minutes a game, which led to several epic second half collapses.

But first qualification in 28 years is still a positive step up. Hopefully the influence left behind by American coaches Bill Harris and Tamika Raymond paves the way for a brighter future for the game in India.

Indian Sr. National Teams named for 2010 Asian Games

The Sr. National Basketball teams to represent India in the Men’s and Women’s basketball competition at the Guangzhou (China) Asian games, set to be held from Nov 12-27, have been announced.

This is the first time that India will be taking part in this tournament in 28 years. Indian basketball teams had last played in the competition at the Asian Games in New Delhi in 1982.

Vishesh Bhriguvanshi (Men) and Prashanti Singh (Women) have been named the captains of their squads. For the first time, the Indian National teams are being led by American coaches: Bill Harris for the Men’s team and Tamika Raymond for the Women.

Teams

Men

Vishesh Bhriguvanshi (Captain)
Jairam Jat
Jagdeep Singh
Prakash Mishra
Sunil Rathee
Yadivinder Singh
Kiran Pal Singh
Trideep Rai
Hareesh Coroth
Dinesh
Eudrick Pereira
Dishant Shah
Head Coach: Bill Harris
Assistant Coach: Rajinder Singh

Women

Prashanti Singh (Captain)
Geethu Anna Jose
P Anitha
Bharti Netam
Pratima Singh
Akanksha Singh
Pushpa
Harjeet Kaur
Raja Priyadarshini
Sneha Rajguru
Smriti Radhakrishnan
Rajpreet Sandhu
Head Coach:Tamika Raymond
Assistant Coach: Sat Prakash Yadav

The Men’s team will face Afghanistan in Group D of the Preliminary Round 1 on November 13. If India wins, they will join the winners of Group B (either Philippines or Saudi Arabia) into Group F of the Preliminary Round 2. Chinese Taipei, Japan, Qatar, and Iran are the other teams in Group F. 17 men’s teams in total are participating in Asian Games Men’s Basketball.

The Indian Men's team will travel to Hong Kong on October 5th to play some friendly matches in preparation for the competition in China.

Only seven women’s teams are participating, and the Indian Sr. Women’s National Team has been drawn in Women’s Group X along with China, Korea, and Thailand.

Indian Men and Women teams drawn for Asian Games Basketball

The 2010 Asian Games are a little more than a month away, and preparations for the Indian senior basketball teams at the competition have been going on in full swing in Chennai. The men's and women's national teams have also been blessed recently with two new American coaches Bill Harris and Tamika Raymond respectively to guide them into this crucial competition.

Now, the draw has been made: the draw was held at a ceremony in host city Guangzhou (China) on October 7th, draws were made in in eight sports, including Basketball, Water Polo, Handball, Sepak Takraw, Rugby, Football, Volleyball and Gymnastics (Artistic, Rhythmic and Trampoline).

And if you don't know what Sepak Takraw is, neither did I until about three seconds ago. Okay - I did know the game, I just didn't know what it was called. Sepak Takraw is "kick-volleyball", where you combine football and volleyball together.

Anyways, back to the hoops draws. 17 Men's teams will be participating - and the Men's draw is looking complicated. The better eight of these teams (China, Korea, Uzbekistan, Jordan, Chinese Taipei, Japan, Qatar, Iran) have been placed into second round groups E and F. The rest of the team are spread across Groups A-D. The winners of Group A and C join Group E in the second round, and the winners of Group B and D join group F in the second round.

All good so far? Now, India is in Group D along with Afghanistan. If they win, they can move on to the next round to play Chinese Taipei, Jordan, Qatar, and Iran in group F. And it's not going to be a cakewalk, mind you, because the last time the Sr. Men's team were in competitive action at the South Asian Games, they lost to only one team (including the final): Afghanistan - who actually beat India twice in the competition.

The other teams in the men's pool are: Hong Kong, Kuwait, DPR Korea, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Turkmenistan, Mongolia.

The Women's pool in the tournament only has seven teams divided into two Groups. Indian Women are in Group X, along with China, Korea, and Thailand. Chinese Taipei, Japan, and Maldives are in the Group Y.

The 16th Asian Games will be held from November 12-27, 2010

India lose to Afghanistan in SAG final

Despite an inspired second-half comeback, India lost to Afghanistan 65-64 in the final of the South Asian Games basketball tournament, at Dhaka (Bangladesh) last night.

India's national basketball team, The Young Cagers, had lost to Afghanistan once in the group stages of the tournament.

Afghanistan.

Seriously, Afghanistan.

Here's an excerpt of the final's recap from The Hindu:

India tasted its first setback of the 11th South Asian Games here on Friday. First the Indian football team bowed out in the semifinals losing to host Bangladesh 0-1 and later the men’s basketball team was beaten by Afghanistan in a rousing final 65-64.

Trailing 35-44 at half-time, the Indians made a remarkable recovery in the next two quarters to tie the score at 58-all. The Indians, 49th in the FIBA ranking, kept the pressure on and took the vital lead with four minutes to go.
Jagdeep Singh, who was the Indian playmaker, missed a couple of lay-up shots at the crucial minutes and this allowed the Afghanistan to sink in a two-pointer to regain the lead by one point.

Apart from the Afghanistan losses, the Vishesh Bhriguvanshi led squad actually performed well in the rest of the tournament. India was in a group with Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. They won their other two group games, highlighted by a 52-point drubbing of Sri Lanka (led by Vishesh's 31-point explosion).

In the semi-final, India defeated the hosts Bangladesh 96-54 before losing to Afghanistan for the second time in the close final on Friday night.

Indian basketball team at South Asian Games

The South Asian games, being held at Bangladesh this year, were inaugurated yesterday at their capital city of Dhaka. Along with hosts Bangladesh, the other participating countries are India, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Bhutan, and Afghanistan.



India is sending a contingent of 331 athletes, and will be taking part in all of the 23 sports, except, funnily, T-20 cricket! They are the overwhelming favourites for the competition.

The basketball team for this tournament is being led by Varanasi boy Vishesh Bhriguvanshi:

Vishesh Bhriguvanshi of the Indian Railways will lead the men’s National basketball team that will take part in the SAF Games that got underway today at Dhaka, Bangladesh.
For the Dhaka meet, the players had been training attending the national coaching camp from January at SAI Bangalore.
According to Basketball Federation of India (BFI) secretary general, Harish Sharma, the team is a blend of youth and experience, and should deliver the goods.

Vishesh Bhriguvanshi (Captain), Yadwinder Singh, Prakash Mishra, Arjun Singh (all Indian Railways), Talwinderjeet Singh, Jagdeep Singh (both Punjab), S Robinson, Hareesh Koroth, Vineeth Revi (all Tamil Nadu), Mihir Pandey, Trideep Rai (both Uttarakhand) and Kiran Pal (Chattisgarh.
Aleksandar Bucan (head coach), Mohit Bhandari (assistant coach)
Suryaveer Singh Shekhwat (manager).