Ram Kumar: Hoopistani Indian Basketball Hall of Fame

Photo courtesy: Punjabbasketball.org

For some, basketball just flows in the genes, giving them a natural magnetism towards the game, a magnetism that could potentially become a reality with hard work and persistence. One of India's most-respected coaches and accomplished former players, Ram Kumar is one such individuals, carrying on his father's legacy with the game, winning the Dhyan Chand Award, and now, landing up in the Hoopistani Indian Basketball Hall of Fame.

Ram Kumar was born in Delhi in 1964, the son of basketball great and Arjuna Awardee Khushi Ram, who was added to the Hall of Fame last month. Kumar's own basketball career began in 1983, when he played his first Nationals in Calicut. He moved to Income Tax and then joined Indian Railways in the mid-80s, which became his professional home. Representing the Railways, Kumar - an extraordinary shooting-guard - won eight gold, three silver, and three bronze medals over the next decade and a half.

Ram represented India's national basketball team from 1991-1996, and served as the captain from 1991-1995. During his peak years, he stood out as India's top scorer at many international events, including the 1995 FIBA ABC in Seoul. He played in several international Railway Games, test matches in the USA, and more.

After his retirement from playing in 2003, Kumar was appointed the coach of Indian Railways basketball squad, whom he has since shepherded to many more honours. He has served as coach of India's junior basketball team and continues to be a part of India's national coaching system, contributing to the training and scouting of players hopeful of breaking into the senior teams. Kumar is currently working as a Senior Sports Officer at Rail Coach Factory at Kapurthala.

A highlight of Kumar's career was winning the Dhyan Chand Award in 2003 for lifetime contribution to sports, becoming one of only two Indian basketball players to receive this prestigious honour. Kumar was also handed the Maharana Pratap Award in 1989 and the Rail Minister Award in 1994. His illustrious family also included another former India basketball captain and his brother, Asok Kumar.

Click here for more of the Indian Basketball Hall of Fame.

Indian basketball legends unite to launch Basketball India Players Association; announce nationwide inter-school league

After several years preparing in the background for the big moment, the Basketball India Players Association (BIPA) formally launched on Saturday, July 29, at the Constitutional Club in New Delhi, in the presence of Olympians, former captains and distinguished awardees of the game. Registered as a non-profit company, The BIPA will be an organisation hoping to promote the game without being in “confrontation or competition” with any federation or association - which means, of course, the Basketball Federation of India (BFI).

Straightaway, BIPA announced the launch of a massive 16-city, 1,024-team inter-school basketball league, which will begin next month all across the country.

The attendees at the launch event included chief guest Yogeshwar Dutt (India's 2012 Olympic Medalist Wrestler), Gyan Sherawat Singh (1984 Olympian), Ajmer Singh, Hanuman Singh (both Arjuna Awardees and 1980 Basketball Olympians), Zorawar Singh, TS Sandhu (1980 Basketball Olympian), Gajendra Singh (Member of Parliament and BIPA President) Ram Kumar (Dhyanchand Awardee, Former Captain of Indian Men's Basketball Team, Secretary General of BIPA), Divya Singh (Former Captain of Indian Women's Basketball Team and Treasurer of BIPA) and many more.

The BIPA have several objectives for current and former players, listed on his blog by Aruneshwar Gupta, including lifelong security, medical coverage, pension benefits, marketing, help with contractual rights, and mentoring of players and their families. According to Gupta, BIPA is the one of the largest players association in the country and possibly in the world with about 2,800 members who are basketball players, coaches, referees, ground officials, physiotherapists, dietitians, and other stakeholders. The membership is likely to increase to 20,000 by the end of the year.

Dutt, the chief guest at the launch, said at the event, "In any game, the voice of the players, has to be heard. It is great that all the great players have got together."

More details of the BIPA launch and future plans via The Hindu:

The Inter-school tournament will feature events for boys and girls in the under-14 and under-17 sections, in Bengaluru, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chennai, Delhi, Dehradun, Gurugram, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata, Mumbai, Noida, Pune, Raipur and Thiruvananthapuram. It will be played from August 23 to September 6.

There will also be clinics by the leading players of the game to inspire school kids and strengthen their bond with the game.
On the occasion, Olympians Ajmer Singh, Hanuman Singh, Paramjit Singh, Zoravar Singh, Baldev Singh, T.S. Sandhu and Gyan Singh were honoured, along with a host of other players like Ram Kumar, Trideep Rai, Divya Singh, Prashanti Singh, Akanksha Singh, Pratima Singh etc.

Income Tax (Chennai) win 2015 Mulki Sunder Ram Shetty Basketball Tournament in Bengaluru

For five days, eight of India's top basketball clubs and states gathered together in Bengaluru for the 2nd Mulki Sunder Ram Shetty All India Basketball Tournament, an invitational championship held at the city's Sri Kantaveera Stadium. Eventually, the tournament's finale pitted together Chennai's Income Tax and Dehradun's ONGC in a memorable clash. Income Tax's impressive first half effort set the tone for them, as they outlasted ONGC to win the final 70-56 and lift the winner's trophy.

Tipping off on October 7, the tournament was organized and sponsored by Vijaya Bank and held in the memory of the Late Mulki Sunder Ram Shetty, a longstanding former Chairman who was instrumental in the growth of the bank through the 60s and 70s. It was held under the auspices of the Basketball Federation of India (BFI) and the Karnataka State Basketball Association (KSBBA).

ONGC were in the final of the tournament for the second consecutive year after finishing as runners-up in the tournament's debut a year ago. Despite having veteran international big names in the squad, ONGC were missing star Indian center Amrit Pal Singh (playing professionally in Japan) and had to contend with an injured Yadwinder Singh. Early in the game, a scuffle got Yadwinder, ONGC teammate Murali Krishan and Income Tax's Ravi Kumar all throw out of the game.

Income Tax made the most of their slight advantage by taking a huge early lead and stretching it out to 44-24 by halftime. Despite the best efforts of India captain and ONGC's Vishesh Bhriguvanshi (24) in the second half, Income Tax did enough to keep their lead secure and win 70-56. Ram Kumar (22) and international big man Rikin Pethani (19) led the way for the winning side.

Income Tax's MA Raghuram was named the tournament's MVP while his teammate Ram Kumar was given the Most Promising Player award.

Earlier in the day, home team Vijaya Bank - led by Anil Kumar (26) and Arvind (19) - outlasted Thiruvanathapuram's Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) in a highly competitive clash to win the bronze medal in the tournament. KSEB's Alvin Baby scored 32 points and helped his squad lead a charge back in the game's second half, but Vijaya Bank did just enough to win the game 65-61.

Final: Income Tax (Ram Kumar 22, Rikin Pethani 19) bt ONGC (Vishesh Bhriguvanshi 24, Riyazuddin 14) 70-56 [20-10, 24-14, 17-19, 9-13].

Final Standings

• 1. Income Tax
  
• 2. ONGC
  
• 3. Vijaya Bank
  

Indian basketball legend - the late Khushi Ram - immortalized with statue in Haryana village

During his prime, Khushi Ram always found a way atop the basketball score card, dominating Asian tournaments and rising above competitors from across the world as one of the finest Indian basketball players of his generation. As years passed, hindsight titled the man affectionately referred to as 'The Magician of Basketball' as one of the greatest Indians to ever play the game. And now, two years after his death (at 77), Ram's legacy has been immortalized forever.

Earlier this week, a statue of Khushi Ram was unveiled in his home village of Jhamri, in the Jhajjar district of Haryana. The marble statue was a first-of-its-kind to be given to honour a basketball player in India. A former captain of India's national Men's team, Kumar was handed with the Arjuna Award in 1967. His son Ram Kumar (also an Arjuna Awardee for basketball), former basketball legend Ajmer Singh, and many members of the Indian Basketball Players Association (IBPA) were among the many present to unveil this statue in Jhamri.

The 6-foot4 Ram was one of the leaders of an era when Indian basketball was on the rise. He was an integral part of India's national team from 1964-72, and captained India in 1965 at their first ever appearance at the Asian Basketball Confederation Championship (now known as the FIBA Asia Championship) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. India finished 7th at the tournament. He was the highest scorer at the championship (the only Indian at the Senior Men's level to be the tournament's highest scorer). In the next two Asian Championships in Seoul (Korea) and Bangkok (Thailand), he was the tournament's second and third highest scorer respectively.

Born in Jhamri on August 7, 1936. His interest for basketball began at age 14 when he joined the Delhi-based Army unit Rajputana Rifles as a Boy Recruit in 1950. He made his debut as a youth player at the National Basketball Championship in 1952 representing the Armed Forces team. From a young age, he was known for his shooting ability - which helped him become an unstoppable scorer for the course of his career - and for his high IQ and sense of the game.

Ram's fame was at its height in 1970, when he dominated at the 10th Anniversary Celebrations Championship in Manila and scoring 43 points (highest by an Indian in an international) against the hosts Philippines.

After retirement and even until his final years, Ram was coaching basketball to students at the Modern School in Kota.

The Indian Express' Shivani Naik wrote in further detail about the statue unveiling and Ram's past glories.

His son Ram Kumar, an Arjuna Award-winner just like him and a coach of equal repute with the Railways, believes that it was important to set down the legacy in stone. “I personally went to Jaipur and this was made by sculptors who specialize in marble work and took two months to complete,” he says. “India’s attention is on basketball and everyone’s looking ahead to developments in NBA. But we also need to honour our past, because Indian basketball has a rich history, and Khushi Ram was a legend,” he said.
A dozen boys trained by the doyen in his final years, also played an exhibition game, as his work continues in the little-known village. Jhamri promises to be a rare basketball nursery even as the rest of Haryana is swept by myriad other sports — hockey, volleyball, boxing and even cricket. “The villagers came out in huge numbers because they knew what this man did for Indian basketball. I can’t expect the whole country to know him but it was heartening that the whole village turned up at the unveiling by another towering legend Ajmer Singh (who was India’s highest scorer in the 1980 Olympics),” Ramkumar said.
The legend of Khushi Ram is incomplete without the tale of the Philippines coach. The tiny island country were the dominant nations of Asian basketball in the 60s. A Philippines coach had once declared after an invitational tournament where Khushi Ram finished as the MVP of Asia, the highest scorer in Asia and best centre of the meet: “Give us Khushi Ram, and we’ll conquer the world.” Asia’s most formidable side in 1970s had just been humbled by a spirited India, riding on Khushi Ram’s exploits at Manila, and the rival coach made more than the polite enquiry into whether it was possible to poach India’s tall-man for good, before the team returned home.

“I know basketball players get lost in sands of time and are forgotten. But the statue will keep the spirit of this game and what it means to several village ball players alive. Future Satnams (Dallas Mavericks pick Satnam Singh) are bound to come from villages,” Ram Kumar added.

As far as I know through Uncle Google, Jhamri, with a population of a little over 2,000 people, is barely indistinguishable from one hot, farming Haryana village to another. Khushi Ram may have been the village's most accomplished son, and now, Jhamri can become the part of a unique Indian basketball pilgrimage. Pilgrims of other religions travel hundreds or thousands or miles to pay respect to their saints or their Gods around the world; for those whose true faith is basketball in India, this little village with the statue of one of our greatest talents, may become a minor 'tirth stahl' of its own.

Indian Basketball Legend & Arjuna award winner Khushi Ram passes away

The man who was once called The Magician of Basketball in India, the legendary Khushi Ram, passed away at age 77 on December 29, 2013. Ram will go down in history as one of the India's greatest ever basketball players and - at his time - one of the top talents in all of Asia. A former captain of India's national Men's team, Kumar was handed with the Arjuna Award in 1967.

While we live in a time when basketball players in India rarely get the respect and admiration that the sport deserves, Ram was one of the leaders of an era when Indian basketball was on the rise. Ram was an integral part of India's national team from 1964-72, and captained India in 1965 at their first ever appearance at the Asian Basketball Confederation Championship (now known as the FIBA Asia Championship) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. India finished 7th at the tournament. He was the highest scorer at the championship (the only Indian at the Senior Men's level to be the tournament's highest scorer). In the next two Asian Championships in Seoul (Korea) and Bangkok (Thailand), he was the tournament's second and third highest scorer respectively.

Ram was also the father of another Indian basketball legend, the Dhyan Chand Award Winner Ram Kumar, and of the late Asok Kumar.

Ram was born in Jhamri village in Rohtak district in Haryana on August 7, 1936. His interest for basketball began at age 14 when he joined the Delhi-based Army unit Rajputana Rifles as a Boy Recruit in 1950. He made his debut as a youth player at the National Basketball Championship in 1952 representing the Armed Forces team. From a young age, he was known for his shooting ability - which helped him become an unstoppable scorer for the course of his career - and for his high IQ and sense of the game.

From 1958-68, Ram was associated with the Army. The Armed Force team won India's National Basketball title 10 consecutive years, with Ram leading the helm several times as the tournament's best player. In 1969, he moved to Kota (Rajasthan) to join Shri Ram Rayons. He represented the state of Rajasthan for the next five years in National Basketball Championships.

Ram's fame was at its height in 1970, when he dominated at the 10th Anniversary Celebrations Championship in Manila and scoring 43 points (highest by an Indian in an international) against the hosts Philippines.

After announcing his retirement he took over as the coach of Shri Ram Rayons Basketball team in 1976 and also coached Rajasthan's Basketball team for many years. Under his helm, Shri Ram Rayons became one of the best teams in India and won many All India tournaments.

Even until his final years, Ram was coaching basketball to students at the Modern School in Kota.

We wave goodbye to a pioneer of Indian Basketball, one of the greats to have paved the way for the path that all of today's players now follow. Ram received a lot of tributes for his achievements in his lifetime, but the most lasting tribute to his memory would be a concentrated effort by the basketball fraternity in the country to help India reach it's old glories again, and perhaps even shoot for a higher level than ever before.