3 reasons why India can win a medal in basketball in Asian Games 2023
Basketball will be one of the prominent team sports at the 2023 Asian Games held in Hangzhou, China. The continental showpiece event was originally scheduled for 2022 but postponed for a year after a surge in COVID-19 cases was reported in China.
A total of four basketball events will be staged at the 19th edition of the Asian Games. Fixtures of 5x5 and 3x3 will be played across both men's and women’s competitions. Barring the men’s 5x5 competition, India will participate in the remaining events. The Sports Ministry of India withdrew the men’s 5x5 team from the Asiad because they weren’t ranked amongst the top eight in Asia.
The men’s basketball events will be hosted from September 26 to October 6 and a total of 16 teams are participating. All the teams are divided into four groups, each consisting of four teams. India is placed with China, Malaysia and Macau in Pool C.
The Indian women’s 5x5 squad will play against Indonesia, Mongolia and China in Group A while the women’s 3x3 team will play with Uzbekistan and China in Pool A.
Here are the three significant reasons why India can compete against the best with a high intensity:
#1 The emergence of INBL
The Indian National Basketball League (INBL) was launched in November 2021 by the Basketball Federation of India (BFI). Headstart Arena India was appointed to execute the league plans. The first season (5x5) was held in 2022 across three rounds in three different locations - Kochi, Pune and Delhi. The final took place between Chennai Heats and Bengaluru Kings in Bengaluru.
Chennai beat Bengaluru on an aggregate score of 183-151 in two legs to emerge as the inaugural season champions. The INBL involves multiple age groups from grassroots levels in order to hunt and groom the country’s promising talent.
The first set of the INBL 3x3 season took place between March and May last year with matches held in 20 cities across India, involving more than 9000 players in four different categories namely Men, Women, U18 Men, U18 Women. Kochi Stars and Space Jams
The International Basketball Federation (FIBA) recognized BFI last month and the move opens the doors of ample opportunities for players to participate in international events abroad.
#2 Indians upsetting higher-ranked sides
Although India missed the ticket to the Paris Olympics 2023 after finishing third at the 2024 FIBA men’s pre-qualifying tournament (5x5) for Asia last month, there were plenty of things to boost the confidence of the Indian hoopsters.
The World No. 82 India defeated better-ranked teams in Syria (85-74) and (90-74) and lost to Kazakhstan by the closest margin (70-73). Even though India won't participate in the men's 5x5 Basketball event at Asiad, the members of 3x3 Princepal Singh, Pranav Prince, Lokendra Singh and Sahaij Sekhon have already been part of the resilience of the full-court games.
#3 Comfortable Groups
India has a mix of challenging and light opponents, although no team can be written off. The men must be calculative to ensure they display an aggressive game style against Malaysia and Macau, China.
The women’s 5x5 can jostle against the likes of Indonesia and Mongolia and head coach S. Baskar certainly has those permutations in his mind. Nevertheless, top-notch efforts in knockout stages will only define the team’s journey.