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Hyderabad: Basketball players irked over court sharing
The basketball court in LB stadium, which is still under construction, has become the centre of a debate after SATS officials decided to give it to skaters three days a week
Hyderabad: The basketball fraternity, which is eagerly waiting for the upcoming court at the LB Stadium, were in for a rude shock when they learnt that the Sports Authority of Telangana State (SATS) officials decided to give it to skaters three days a week.
The basketball court, which is still under construction, has become the centre of a debate. With the previous basketball court at the LB Stadium premises had been demolished to accommodate Tennis Complex for the 2004 National Games, the basketball trainees were left to use the Nizam College courts for the training. With things moving in the direction, the basketball fans were finally happy to have a dedicated facility. But responding to the requests from the skating association officials, the SATS VC and MD and Principal Secretary KS Sreenivas Raju ordered basketball trainees to use the facility for four days and give it to skaters for another three days in the week.
But the move kicked up a debate in basketball circles. Current Indian women’s coach PB Srinath said the move would deter the growth of the game. “Basketball is an Olympic sport and we don’t have any dedicated facility at the LB Stadium. We are using the courts at Nizam College to train our students. We have been touring the SATS VC and MD for the approval of the basketball court. Finally, things started moving in the right direction. But suddenly, the skaters approached SATS officials asking to give the area to them. Skating is a recreational sport and they need less area to practice. But the basketball court requires specific measurements and this area is perfect,” he added.
He also stated that they went through hardships to get permission for the construction of the facility. “We have been requesting the officials for it. Former VC and MD Rahul Bojja had approved our proposal but the project got delayed because he was elevated as collector and left the post.
A Dinakar Babu, during his final year of tenure, sanctioned our appeal. When we thought our dream was coming true, the latest move came as a shocker,” he added. Speaking about the importance of the facility, Srinath added, “The courts here before it was demolished had produced over 30 internationals. But to train a current lot of trainees, there are no facilities. The YMCA basketball court has taken a beating in road widening. There are a few talented players in the Under-16 category. If we train them properly, they are a bright prospect. But we do not have proper facilities. Even we have an Indian camp player here and he has suffered to train because of non-availability of the courts to practice.”
Meanwhile, the Sports Authority of Telangana State chairman A Venkateshwar Reddy questioned the commitment of the basketball association. He said there was no activity from the association and that forced Principal Secretary K Sreenivasa Raju to approve the request of the skaters. “We are ready to give the court to the basketball association if they are active in conducting activities at the court. There are so many former basketball players. But they are not doing any activities in the districts. We will not stop them from playing basketball. We want some activity at the court. It is lying vacant without any activity.”
“We will build pillars and will lay a court on the top. The skaters can use the facility down and the basketball can be played on top. All I need is some activity at that place,” Venkateshwar Reddy said. “If both parties want to use the facilities, we can sit and talk to both of them and make some arrangements. We can build both courts. But they didn’t approach us,” he added.
On Monday night, basketball representatives, including former Indian captain Hari Krishna Prasad, Telangana Basketball Association secretary Norman Isaac along with players and coaches, met Sports Minister V Srinivnas Goud and requested him to allot the facility for basketball training.
Basketball officials and players meeting Sports Minister V Srininvas Goud at his chamber on Monday.
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