2014 National Basketball Championship: Chhattisgarh win historic title; Tamil Nadu score Men's Gold

In one of the biggest surprises of Indian hoops in the last decade, the dominating Indian Railways Women's side were defeated in a heroic comeback win by Chhattisgarh in the final of the 64th National Basketball Championship for Men and Women in New Delhi on Wednesday, March 5, 2014. Chhattisgarh won the Senior Nationals for the first time ever. Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu's Men's side played some brilliant basketball through the course of the tournament and defeated Punjab to secure gold in the Men's section. The tournament was held from February 26 - March 5 at the Thyagaraj Stadium in Delhi.

Also known as the Senior Nationals, the championship is India's most prestigious annual domestic basketball tournament and features India's finest Men and Women players representing their states or units. The championship, organized by the Basketball Federation of India (BFI) and IMG Reliance in conjunction with the Delhi Basketball Association (DBA) this year, also served as a scouting ground to select India's national basketball squads. A total of 51 teams combined in the Men's and Women's divisions from all across India participated in the nationals.

Chhattisgarh finally put an end to the 10-year domination by Indian Railways over Women's basketball in the country, notching a comeback in the fourth quarter of the final to defeat their opponents 81-77 and winning gold. It would've been the shock of the decade... if it didn't already seem a little predestined. For the past decade, there seemed to be no answers for the Indian Railways team that always managed to pick up India's brightest talents and, of late, surround them around the prodigious talents of Geethu Anna Jose. But Chhattisgarh, under visionary coach Rajesh Patel, had been giving a scare to the established order at various levels of the game in recent years, and were finally able to convert their potential into success at the highest stage.

Chhattisgarh's Kavita Kumari, who had 25 points and 13 rebounds in the final, was the star of the show, dominating inside and out to help her team bounce back after trailing in all three quarters. Chhattisgarh were down 65-60 at the start of the final period, but they were able to pace past Railways in the final period and hold on for the victory. For the first time in 10 years, there was an answer for Geethu Anna Jose, who was held to 17 points in the final. For Chhattisgarh, another rising star Sharanjeet Kaur added 20 points while Bharti Netam had 16.

The Men's final evoked a comeback of sorts too, a promise of a comeback of a late 90s/early 00s dynasty of Tamil Nadu that won five consecutive nationals. After a decade without the gold, TN finally charted their way to the top again by playing smart defense against the physical Punjab side. TN trailed by four points in the first quarter, but took the advantage in a commanding second period and held on for a 74-57 victory. Rikin Pethani and Pratham Singh, who had been TN's strongest players all tournament, led their squad with 22 and 18 points respectively in the final.

It was the third consecutive finals appearance for Punjab, but for the second straight year, they had to settle for a silver medal. Punjab's young big man Palpreet Singh, who had enjoyed a breakout tournament so far, scored 19 points in the finals loss.

Tamil Nadu's Rikin Pethani and Chhattisgarh's Kavita Kumari were given the Harish Sharma Most Valuable Player trophies at the end of the tournament, an award named in honour of the BFI's former CEO who passed away two years ago.

Earlier on Wednesday, the battles for the bronze medal for Men and Women were also held. Gopal Ram scored 16 points to lead Services to a rout over last year's champs Uttarakhand in the Men's game.

In the Women's matchup, hosts Delhi took away a consolation prize as they outlasted Maharashtra for a 79-66 victory. Delhi's Prashanti Singh had a team-high 22 points, while Shireen Limaye (22) and Krittika Divadkar (18) led the way for the losing side.

For each division, the winner took home 1 lakh rupees, while the first and second runners-up received Rs 75,000 and Rs 50,000 respectively.

A day earlier, Delhi's Women's side had been defeated by eternal rivals Indian Railways in the first semi-final, as Geethu Anna Jose scored 27 points in the 100-65 blowout. After a high-scoring first half, Railways held Delhi to just 23 points in the third and fourth periods combined. Anju Lakra and M. Pushpa had 19 points each for Indian Railways. Prashanti Singh had 17 for Delhi. In the second game, MVP Kavita Kumari scored 20 points and Deepa added 16 as Chhattisgarh defeated Maharashtra 75-65. Shireen Limaye had 20 for Maharashtra.

The first Men's semi-final was a rematch of the 2013 Finals as Punjab got their revenge over Uttarakhand with a 80-68 win. Palpreet Singh and Ranbir Singh each had 27 for Punjab, who bounced back from a five-point third quarter deficit to shut down Uttarkhand in the final quarter. Yadwinder Singh led Uttarakhand with 24 as the past holders were denied a chance to repeat this year. For Uttarakhand, star talent Vishesh Bhriguvanshi missed the tournament. Pratham Singh scored 28 and SP Venkatesh added 22 to help TN beat Services 92-85 in the second Men's semi-final. Joginder Singh and veteran Jairam scored 18 each for Services.

Earlier in the tournament, former NBA Coach of the Year Del Harris held a 'Train the Trainers' clinic for attending and local coaches and players.

Final Scores

• Women: Chhattisgarh (Kavita 25, Saranjeet Kaur 20, Bharti Netam 16) bt Indian Railways (Anju Lakra 23, Geethu Anna Jose 17) 81-77 (12-23, 26-23, 22-19, 21-13).
  
• Men: Tamil Nadu (Rikin Pethani 22, Pratham Singh 18, S Prasanna 15) bt Punjab (Palpreet Singh 19) 74-57 (18-22, 19-8, 22-14, 15-13).
  

Third/Fourth Place

• Women: Delhi (Prashanti Singh 22, Akansha Singh 15, Raspreet Sidhu 13, Pratima Singh 13) bt Maharashtra (Shireen Limaye 22, Krittika Divadkar 18) 79-66 (24-16, 17-20, 14-10, 24-20).
  
• Men: Services (Gopal Ram 16, Narender Singh 13) bt Uttarakhand (Yadwinder Singh 15, Amritpal Singh 13) 82-54 (17-9, 25-16, 21-15, 19-14).
  

Final Standings

Women

1. Chhattisgarh
2. Indian Railways
3. Delhi
4. Maharashtra
5. Kerala
6. Tamil Nadu
7. Punjab
8. Karnataka
9. Andhra Pradesh
10. Uttar Pradesh

Men

1. Tamil Nadu
2. Punjab
3. Services
4. Uttarakhand
5. Indian Railways
6. Kerala
7. Karnataka
8. Haryana
9. Chhattisgarh
10. Rajasthan

Most Valuable Players

• Men: Rikin Pethani (Tamil Nadu)
  
• Women: Kavita Kumari (Chhattisgarh)

Defending champs start with wins as 64th National Basketball Championship tips off in Delhi

The race to fight for India's most prestigious basketball trophy - the National Basketball Championship - got underway in its 64th iteration at the Thyagaraj Stadium in the capital city of New Delhi from Wednesday, February 26th. The eight-day tournament is set to feature 51 total state/unit teams from across India. On the opening day, defending champions Uttarakhand (Men) and Indian Railways (Women) both started their campaigns with decisive wins.

The All India 64th National Basketball Championship for Men and Women is being organized by the Basketball Federation of India (BFI) in conjunction with the Delhi Basketball Association (DBA) and support from IMG-Reliance. At the opening ceremony on Friday, Ajit Mohan Saran, the Secretary of Sports for India's Ministry of Sport and Youth Affairs, was the chief guest. Neeraj Kansal (Secretary of the Sports Authority of India) and Del Harris (former NBA Coach of the Year) were also present as special guests.

Uttarakhand, the tournament's reigning champs from last year in Ludhiana and featuring some of the best men stars in Indian basketball, opened their title defense with a closely contested victory against Indian Railways. After falling behind by six points at the end of the third quarter, Uttarakhand came charging back with a 29-17 run in the final period to outlast their opponents 68-62. Rising Indian big man Amrit Pal Singh led the way with 25 points for Uttarakhand while experienced guard Riyazuddin added 16. Gagandeep Singh scored 20 to pace Railways.

Last year's Men's finalists Punjab also started off the tournament with championship intentions and put on a fantastic, balanced display to overwhelm Andhra Pradesh en route to a 92-44 win. Punjab started the game on a 27-4 run and never looked back.

Indian Railways women have won the last six National Championships. They continued their form in their first game, capitalizing on a relatively inexperienced West Bengal side early and cruising to a 68-40 win.

Meanwhile, last year's Women's finalists Tamil Nadu crushed Maharashtra, starting the game on a 22-2 first quarter advantage and keeping their opponents under seven points in every quarter there-after. The unstoppable Appoorva Muralinath had 26 points for TN, outscoring Maharashtra all by herself. TN defeated Maharashtra 63-20.

Selected Scores

Men

• Punjab (Ranbir Singh 15, Amripal Singh 14, Gurvinder Singh 14, Jagdeep Singh 14) bt Andhra Pradesh (GV Reddy 13) 92-44 (27-4, 27-22, 21-10, 17-8).
  
• Uttarakhand (Amrit Pal Singh 25, Riyazuddin 16) bt Indian Railways (Gagandeep Singh 20, Prakesh Mishra 10) 68-62 (15-15, 13-11, 11-19, 29-17).
  
• Services (Gopal Ram 17, SM Settu 16, Dalip Kumar 13) bt Rajasthan (Prashant Singh 22, Vinod Kumar 10) 101-57 (19-17, 31-9, 26-14, 25-17).
  

Women

• Delhi (Raspreet Sidhu 22, Prashanti Singh 18) bt Karnataka (Kruthika Lakshman 19, PU Navneetha 13) 77-58 (20-17, 17-16, 23-13, 17-12).
  
• Indian Railways (Anju Lakra 13) bt West Bengal 68-40 (25-16, 12-11, 13-9, 18-4).
  
• Tamil Nadu (Appoorva Muralinath 26, Soniya Joy 14, R. Ramya 14) bt Maharashtra 63-20 (22-2, 18-5, 11-7, 12-6).
  

You can find a daily updates of results from the tournament here.

As mentioned above, former NBA Coach of the Year Del Harris is a special guest at the tournament. Along with India's National Senior Men's team coach Scott Flemming, Harris hosted a training session for attending coaches and players at the Thyagaraj Stadium on Thursday, February 27th.

51 teams head to New Delhi for 2014 National Basketball Championship

Simply put, there is no bigger domestic basketball event in India, and this year, it returns to the capital city promising to be bigger than ever. From February 26 - March 5, New Delhi will host the 64th National Basketball Championship for Men and Women at the city's Thyagaraj Stadium. A total of 51 teams combined in both divisions will be taking part. For fans and scouts alike, this will be the chance to see the finest of Indian hoops in action competing for the most prized basketball trophy in the country: the National Championship.

Once again, Indian Railways' Women will start as favourites to defend their title for an incredible seventh consecutive year. In the Men's division, Uttarakhand's star-studded squad won the trophy last year in Ludhiana and are still a good bet to retain their trophy. The home squad Delhi, which finished outside a medal place in both Men's and Women's divisions last year, will be looking to ride the momentum of their local fans in attendance and make a run for the championship.

The National Championship was originally slated to be held from the end of November to early December 2013, but it was postponed to avoid any clash with the Delhi Assembly Elections on December 4th.

The tournament will be organized by the Basketball Federation of India (BFI) and the Delhi Basketball Association (DBA) and supported by IMG-Reliance. Several of India's best players will be suiting up, including the gold and bronze medal winning men and women's players respectively from last month's Lusofonia Games in Goa. The winner will take home Rs.1 lakh while the first and second runners-up will receive Rs. 75,000 and Rs. 50,000, respectively.

The National Championship will also help the BFI to select India's national Men and Women teams for the basketball tournament at the 17th Asian Games, set to be begin in Incheon, Korea from September 19, 2014.

Del Harris, a former NBA coach of the year with decades of NBA and international experience, will be visiting India for the National Championship. Harris has been invited as a guest of honour for the tournament's opening ceremony on Wednesday, February 26, and to lead a 'Train the Trainers' Coaches' clinic on Thursday, February 27th. Harris will be conducting the clinic alongside India's Senior Men's national coach Scott Flemming on from 11 AM - 1 PM at the Thyagaraj Stadium for local and attending Indian basketball coaches and players. The clinic is open to all coaches and/or players.

"I am pleased to announce that the 64th National Basketball Championship is being held in New Delhi," said Roopam Sharma, the CEO of the Basketball Federation of India (BFI), "The National Basketball Championship continues to be one of the most competitive basketball tournaments in India at the highest level. BFI and its partners IMG-Reliance have made significant progress in developing the sport of Basketball in the country and competitions like these will help to boost the popularity of the sport. I would also like to thank Coach Del Harris for making himself available and being a part of enhancing the knowledge of our coaches."

Participating Teams

Men

Group A: Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, Indian Railways, Chhattisgarh, Delhi

Group B: Punjab, Services, Rajasthan, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh.

Group C: Haryana, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal.
Group D: Karnataka, Chandigarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Puducherry
Group E: Maharashtra, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa.
Group F: Gujarat, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram..

Women

Group A:  Indian Railways, Delhi, Kerala, Karnataka, West Bengal.
Group B: Tamil Nadu, Chhatttisgarh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh.
Group C: Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir.
Group D: Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Jharkhand.
Group E:  Rajasthan, Chandigarh, Odisha
Group F: Bihar, Assam, Puducherry, Uttarakhand.
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Outside of Uttarakhand, 2012 champions Punjab will be hoping to get some payback for their lost last year and spring back up to the top in the Men's division. Services and Tamil Nadu will also be threats to Uttarakhand's crown this year. In the Women's division, Tamil Nadu and ever-improving Chattisgarh side will be the ones to watch for.

New Delhi hosts 2013-14 BFI-IMG Reliance College Basketball League

The 2013-14 BFI-IMG Reliance School Basketball League now heads to the nation's capital, as a total of 20 squads will compete for the title in New Delhi. The league, which has already launched in Hyderabad and Mumbai earlier this month, is set to be held in a record eight Indian cities this season.

The league is being organized in collaboration with the Delhi Basketball Association. After the leagues are completed in all eight cities, the winners from each will will participate in the National Champions Cup to be held in April/May, 2014 in New Delhi.

New Delhi's BFI-IMG Reliance College Basketball League - Participating Teams

Men

• Group A:Hindu College, Kirori Mal College, Shri Ram College of Commerce, Zakir Husain College, Motilal Sri Venkateswara College.
  
• Group B:St. Stephen’s College, Hansraj College, Khalsa College, Nehru College, Ramjas College.
  

Women

• Group A: St. Stephen’s College, Miranda House College, Ramjas College, Khalsa College, Kirori Mal College.
  
• Group B: Lady Shri Ram College, Shri Ram College of Commerce, Gargi College, Sri Venkateswara College, Jesus and Mary College.
  

India’s first-ever National 3x3 Basketball Championship tips off in Delhi

3x3 basketball has existed for pretty much as long as real basketball has, but in recent years, this shortened, quicker format of the game is being pushed to gain more official status and respectability around the world. The world’s governing body of basketball – FIBA – is hoping that their efforts to push FIBA 3x3 will make the format an Olympic sport by 2016.

And this spirit has trickled down to India, too. So much that, for the first time in history, the Basketball Federation of India (BFI) is organizing India’s first ever 3x3 National Basketball Championship for Men & Women on April 10-11 at the Thyagraj Indoor Stadium in New Delhi. A total of 20 Men’s and 16 Women’s teams featuring India’s best senior players from various states across the country will be taking part in the competition. The tournament is being organized in conjunction with the Delhi Basketball Association (DBA).

According to BFI’s CEO Roopam Sharma, the National Tournament for this format of the game will now be held annually in India to keep up with the growth of 3x3 tournaments around the world.

If you haven’t been keeping up, here is a quick recap of the official rules of 3x3: Games will be played on the half-court. Each team can have four players – three on the court and one off the bench. Each field goal is worth one point and a three-pointer is two points. The first team to 21, or the first team leading at the end of 10 minutes, wins. The shot-clock is just 12 seconds long. If scores are tied after 10 minutes there will be overtime, and the first team with a two point lead wins.

The BFI has announced that 40 matches a day will be played at the Thyagraj Stadium in Delhi – on multiple half-courts simultaneously – over the next two days. So if you’re in Delhi, head there now to watch the action!

In preparation for this first-time event, several states across the country have already held state-level 3x3 tournaments to pick their representing teams, including Kerala and Delhi.

The shortened version of the game means that it is nearly impossible to predict which team will shine and go on to lift the first ever trophy. Teams which have dominated India’s 5x5 national tournaments, like Punjab, Uttarakhand, or Indian Railways, Services, Tamil Nadu (Men) or Indian Railways, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, or Kerala (Women) will as usual boast the strongest squads. But a competition like this leaves room for surprises and upsets, and that is essentially the essence of the fun of 3-on-3 half-court play.

India has had some success in 3x3 Basketball in recent years, and relatively, more than they’ve had in the ‘full’ version of the game. India’s Women’s team memorably won the gold medal at the 3x3 Beach Games in China last year. India’s Men and Women both won the gold at the South Asian Beach Games in Sri Lanka in 2011.

This tournament will serve as a platform to pick India’s national 3x3 team for future FIBA competitions. Four top Men and four Women players will be picked to represent India in the First FIBA Asia 3x3 Basketball Championship in Doha (Qatar) for Men from May 15-17 this year and for Women later in June.

BFI CEO Sharma said, “Our endeavour is to maximize the potential of basketball promotion and development in India. These two events are crucial in the growth and popularity of the sport."

A week after the conclusion of the Delhi 3x3 Nationals, the basketball circus will move to Ludhiana (Punjab), where the BFI will be organizing the first ever U18 3x3 National Basketball Championship for Men and Women. That competition will also be held in similar to these nationals and the best performing players will be picked to play for the U18 FIBA Asia 3x3 Basketball Championships in Bangkok (Thailand) from May 22-24, 2013.

Bringing national-level 3x3 Basketball to India, played under official rules and terms, is another major step ahead for Indian basketball. My only hope is that it doesn't overshadow the importance of the more respected and challenging real 5x5 version of the game. In India, 3x3 can introduce a whole new audience to participate in or attend basketball games. It can help in further popularizing the sport in the country and guide our national teams to more success in international competitions.

BFI-IMG Reliance School League returns to Delhi for 3rd season

GD Goenka Boys and Montfort School Girls will be scouting their new challengers as the third edition of the BFI-IMG Reliance Delhi School League tips off across several schools in New Delhi on Friday, August 31. Organised by the Basketball Federation of India (BFI), IMG Reliance, and the Delhi Basketball Association (DBA), the third edition of the Delhi School League will be the largest yet, involving a total of 23 teams (12 boys’, 11 girls’) in competition.

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Roopam Sharma elected Honorary Secretary of the Delhi Basketball Association

Roopam Sharma, the newly appointed CEO of the Basketball Federation of India (BFI), was also elected as the Honorary Secretary of the Delhi Basketball Association (DBA) via unanimous vote at a DBA Executive Committee Meeting. The widow of BFI's former CEO Harish Sharma, Roopam Sharma also follows her late husband as the DBA's Honorary Secretary.

According to the BFI, Sharma will be in charge of the day to day activities of the DBA as well as all basketball events that take place in Delhi. Roopam Sharma on behalf of the Basketball Federation of India would extend all the support needed to facilitate the DBA functioning.

Ms. Sharma added that "The additional responsibilities conferred on me by the DBA, it will be my duty to work with the utmost sincerity and dedication to bring in positive initiatives to promote basketball in Delhi. I will remain committed to cater to the challenges at all times but most importantly, I look forward to working in a cohesive manner to take the game forward."

Capital Gains: A short story of Basketball in Delhi

“Delhi is the center – it features everyone from all over the country, people from near and far who make this city their home.”

Chander Mohan, an executive member of the Delhi Basketball Association (DBA) and the Basketball Federation of India (BFI) paused as he said this, and then added, “This means that basketball in Delhi is a focal point of all these different people from different places too: players who come here to study, to work, and become part of the city’s basketball culture. This is the capital, and the central station for basketball in India.”

The story of basketball in Delhi is a long and not-always-successful one: it may be the central station for the game in India – after all, the head office of the BFI lies in India’s capital city – but for most of its nearly 60 year history, basketball in Delhi rarely produced the kind of talent, results, and fan frenzy that has been present in a few other parts of India.

Luckily for all those connected with the game in the city, things are changing rapidly for the better.

The 62nd Junior National Basketball Championship is being held at the Thyagraj Stadium in New Delhi from July 5th-12th: a sprawling stadium with one of the best indoor multi-sport facilities available in India, Thyagraj is playing host to 26 boys’ and 25 girls’ teams for this under-18 championship.

The Thyagraj Stadium is just one of many new stadia built to support the growth of sports in New Delhi, the root of which of course goes back to the 2010 CommonWealth Games in the city. Much-maligned by dubious scam-claims and corruption accusations, the 2010 CWG at least provided one sure-fire, long-term benefit to the city: the construction of world-class sporting infrastructure. Basketball wasn’t even included in the CWG sporting line-up, but with the stadia free, the BFI came calling to ensure it would make full use of the facilities.

The most-recent Senior Nationals, which concluded in the first week of January, were held at the glossy Talkatora Indoor Stadium. At this time, another sprawling facility, the Indira Gandhi Stadium, is being occupied by Indian Senior and Youth male and female basketball players, who are taking part in National camps at the KD Jadhav Indoor Hall in preparation for FIBA Asia events later in the year. With the Thyagraj Stadium offering three indoor, fully air-conditioned, and wooden basketball courts for the Junior Nationals, the current championships have made history by providing indoor facility for every single game played at the nationals.

Delhi has always had good infrastructure, but it has never been this good. It has always had basketball, too: Delhi’s hoops history traces back almost as far as the history of the BFI – with DBA was formed in the early 50s with the mission of creating a basketball culture, holding championships, and ultimately, promoting the game in the city. “The DBA is one of the oldest basketball associations in India,” said Ashok Rangeen, the treasurer of the DBA and joint-secretary of the BFI, “It has been regularly conducting coaching camps and championships in the city for players of all levels – U14, U16, U18 and Senior – and of both genders.”

Despite this history, Delhi used to lag behind when it came to producing National-level talent from the city, as compared to other states in India. But over the past decade, even this equation has flipped. “Delhi has done well in helping to mould players to become stars for India,” said Mohan, “These days, the Indian National team, especially the woman’s one, is full of Delhi-based players.”

And this is certainly true: even the current Indian Senior Woman’s squad, formed by new Woman’s coach Pete Gaudet, features five players currently based from Delhi – Prashanti Singh (the most recent Indian captain), Akanksha Singh, Raspreet Sidhu, Harjeet Kaur, and Asha Hedge. Rangeen added: “The number of star players from Delhi has multiplied – it reflects on the success of the game here.”

What is more inspiring, perhaps, is that fans in the city are becoming more aware of the game – from casual games pick-up games at Siri Fort to competitive matches at Vasant Kunj there is a definite increase in the numbers of basketball players as well as basketball fans in the city, the proof of the latter which is evident by the increased attendance during the Nationals and other basketball-related events.

“There are over 20 school, college, and open basketball tournaments or leagues that are held regularly in New Delhi,” said Rangeen, “These have really help in popularising the game here.”

Both Mohan and Rangeen spoke about DBA’s scheme to ‘Catch them young’ – promoting the game amongst younger players to make them hoop-aficionados at an earlier stage. The first School Basketball League was held amongst 10 boys’ and 10 girls’ schools in Delhi last year, and became the most popular of such events. Sponsored by IMG-Reliance, who have been supporting the BFI for over a year now, the school league saw the emergence of some great young talent from the city. Several of the successful players from this league are now featuring in Delhi’s Youth and Junior teams. The School League is also just the first step – sometime this year, expect to see an IMG-Reliance backed College League in the city too, played in a similar, popular home-and-away league-cum-knockout system.

This effort to ‘Catch them young’ wasn’t born overnight, though: the DBA has been improving its efforts to raise the standards of the younger players in the city for the past 10 years. “We have improved a lot at the Junior, Youth, and Sub-Junior level over the last decade,” said Rangeen, “Over the last year, our Sub-Junior boys squad showed a good performance at the Kangra Nationals, and our Youth Boys won the recently completed Youth Nationals at Nagpur.”

On the Senior level, it is the Delhi woman, powered by the National-level players mentioned above, who have been dominating the game over the last decade. Delhi have found themselves in the Finals of nearly every Senior National Championship in recent years, only to lose out to their biggest foes – Indian Railways – at most occasions.

Outside of the official events, there is a lot more basketball to be found in the city. The second season of the NBA’s Mahindra Challenge, an inner-city recreational basketball league, brought the game to Delhi with Junior and Senior competitions in late 2010/2011. This league saw frenzied participation from several schools and amateur clubs in and around Delhi.

No mention of ‘Delhi’ and ‘club league’ can be completed without mentioning the Prithvi Nath Club (PNC): For years, the PNC was host to Delhi’s only All-India club basketball championship – the Master Prithvi Nath Memorial Basketball Tournament – before construction-work halted the annual tournament three years ago. This year, there was a quick, smaller replacement, as the Reebok IGMA Basketball Association (RIBA) League helped in bringing back all-India club basketball to the city.

With the youth in the city all set to become the future faces of the game, and the present seniors doing a good job at representing the city, there is no doubt that the capital will continue to become a major force for basketball events and attraction in the future.

As for now, we come back to the Thyagraj Stadium, India’s best Junior players are enjoying basketball facilities and infrastructure of the highest quality. In less than a week’s time, the Stadium will host a different kind of basketball talent: the Indian Sr. Men’s team, in practice at the IG Stadium currently with Coach Kenny Natt, will take part in a SAARC countries qualifying tournament at the Thyagraj Stadium for a spot in the 26th FIBA Asia Basketball Championship that will be held in Wuhan (China) later in this year. From July 13-15th, India’s finest players will be in Delhi, along with players from Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka.

The capital has already brought together talent from all over the country – with its recent steps forward to become a home for hoops, it could be bringing more and more talent from the world to its shores.

62nd Junior National Basketball Championship will bring 51 teams to New Delhi

26 boys’ and 25 girls’ under-18 teams have confirmed entry into the 62nd Junior National Basketball Championship in New Delhi from July 5-12th. The championship will be organised by the Basketball Federation of India (BFI) in association with the Delhi Basketball Association (DBA). The matches will be played in fully air-conditioned indoor courts at the Thyagaraj Indoor Stadium.

Players born on or after 01.01.1993 are eligible to participate.

The participating teams are:

Boys: Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Kerala, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Orissa, Pondicherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal.

Girls: Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Kerala, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Orissa, Pondicherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal.

Punjab (Boys) and Kerala (Girls) won the 61st Junior National Basketball Championship, which were from October 24-31 in Vashi (Maharashtra).