Basketball in India

Basketball in India began its journey during the first half of the twentieth century and is considered as one of the widely played sports in the country.

The term "Basketball" actually refers to the large round ball and the basket, used in this game. Basketball in India is played in most of the high schools, colleges and universities and especially the younger generation like to lay this game. India is one of those first few countries in the history of Basketball that adopted the game, within a few years of its inception. This is actually a ball game where two teams consisting of five players each, play against each other. This fast-paced game requires a great quality of fitness and athleticism on behalf of the players. Invested by the famous Athletic Director from Canada, Dr. James Naismith, Basketball is played on a court with standard dimensions. The teams can earn points only by shooting a round inflated ball through a raised metal hoop and net at the opponent`s end of the court.

Basketball in India started its journey almost more than a hundred and thirty years ago. The history of Basketball is not that much old, as it was invented by a Canadian physician named Dr. James Naismith, in the year 1891. He is popularly known as the inventor of basketball and hence called as "The Father of Basketball" all over the world. He had the concept of Basketball in his mind since his school days and he used to play a game named `duck-on-a-rock` outside his one-room schoolhouse. The game was about attempting to knock a `duck` off the top of a large rock by tossing another rock at it. This game is believed to be the ancestor of Basketball.

Invention of Basketball : Dr. Naismith attended the McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, after completing his school education. At the completion of his college education, he served as McGill`s Athletic Director and then he moved on to the YMCA Training School in Springfield. This is the place in Massachusetts, USA where Dr. Naismith invented Basketball in 1891. While working as physician in Springfield, he was trying to find a sport that would be suitable to play inside, during the Massachusetts winter. Naismith actually wanted to create such a game for his students that will need skill instead of only strength. He also needed the game to be played indoors in a small space. Once Dr. Naismith invented the game of Basketball and wrote down some basic rules for playing the game, his students played Basketball with a soccer ball and used two peach baskets as goals.

First Basketball Match in India : The first ever Basketball match in the history of Basketball was played on 20th January, 1892. The name `Basket ball` was suggested by one of his students and the game became quite popular instantly. The game of Basketball was introduced to a number of nations by the YMCA movement during the year of 1893. The first ever inter-collegiate match took place in America in the year 1895 and in 1896; the first collegiate Basketball match was played, with 5 players in each team. In India, basketball started its journey from 1930. The first Indian National Championship for men was conducted in 1934 in New Delhi.

Formation of Basketball Federation of India : Basketball Federation of India is the governing and controlling body of Basketball in India. Basketball Federation of India is responsible for the development and promotion of Basketball at all levels.

Management of Basketball Federation of India : Basketball Federation of India manages all the national level basketball operations in India. It is involved in organizing training camps and national tournaments, and in preparing Indian teams for both men and women international competitions in various age categories.

Non Popularity of Basketball in India : However, though it was interesting to play, the Basketball players soon faced some serious problems that they had to solve, without much delay. The main problem was that, as they were using two peach baskets as goals, whenever the ball was thrown into the basket, the players couldn`t get it down without climbing up a ladder. So, they decided to cut holes at the bottom of the baskets in order to play faster, as the ball will fall through the hole easily. The players followed this process till the year 1906, when metal hoops with backboards replaced the peach baskets.

Rise of the Popularity of Basketball in India : With the increasing popularity of Basketball in different countries of the world, the need of founding a governing body started to be felt by many. National Basketball associations started to be formed in many nations, among which, England, America, India etc were the forerunners.

Introduction of Basketball in Olympics : Basketball was introduced as an official game in the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games, and this event is considered as one of the most memorable occasions in the history of Basketball. With this, the popularity of the sport started to increase at a very high speed. Basketball got its first television coverage in 1940 when the college games were being held.

Establishment of National Basketball Association (NBA) : The year 1949 saw the establishment of the National Basketball Association (NBA) that is one of the most powerful governing bodies for Basketball in the world, at present. The NBA was formed in America with eight teams as its members and another organisation named the American Basketball Association (ABA) was also established in 1967. However, the ABA only lasted about nine years, due to serious financial problems. In the present scenario, Basketball is being played all over the world and it has also become one of the most popular games that the people watch and play.

In a Basketball match, both the teams play offensively and defensively at the same time and their main objective are to throw the ball into opponent`s basket. The referee throws the ball in air at the beginning of the match and the game begins with the jump of the ball. Both the teams try to grab the ball and control it right from that moment. Passing, ball handling, shooting, and rebounding are among the basic attacking skills of Basketball. Among the defensive skills, there is guarding the opponents, blocking and positioning to defend own basket, intercept or steal the ball from the opponents very quickly and also rebounding the missed shots.

There are a large number of terms of Basketball that help the spectator and also the players to understand the game, in a better way. The match officials and players make good use of these terms to play a fair and standard match. Being one of the earliest countries to adopt Basketball, India has so far produced numerous talented Basketball players, who have earned recognition and reputation in the international arena.

The Indian Basketball players have also won several trophies for their country. There are several basketball players in India, who have been honoured by the Government of India through the prestigious Arjuna Award. Hence, the number of Arjuna awardees in Basketball is quite huge. Basketball in India is mainly being run and managed by a large number of national and state level associations, spread all over India. Satnam Singh Bhamara, Narender Kumar Garewal, R.D. Singh, Eban Hyams, Vikas Kharadkar, Sambhaji Kadam, Amjyot Singh and many more are the famous basketball players in India.

Indian Basketball Associations are the non governmental associations which are promoting basketballs in India, by organising regional and international tournaments in India. 

Basketball Federation of India : The Basketball Federation of India (BFI) is the national governing body for basketball in India and all the other Indian Basketball associations are under its umbrella. Basketball Federation of India (BFI) came into existence during the middle half of the twentieth century and since then. Being the apex body for basketball, the BFI organizes several basketball related activities in India. Basketball Federation of India (BFI) conducts various training camps and organises several tournaments both at the state and national levels, in collaboration with the state level associations. Basketball Federation of India (BFI) also provides the players with necessary facilities like coaching, training and arranging modern equipments for playing basketball. K Govindraj is the current President of Basketball Federation of India (BFI) with Chander Mukhi Sharma as the Secretary-General.

State Level Indian Basketball Associations : State level Indian basketball associations mainly operate within the territory of their respective states. The main objectives of State level Indian basketball associations are to spread the game of basketball all over the state discover new talents from the grass roots level. In order to do so, the state level Indian Basketball associations organise training camps and tournaments in association with the BFI. All the states of India have their respective basketball associations and apart from them, there are some other Indian basketball associations run and managed by different Governmental organisations.

Basketball Federation of India (BFI) is the governmental body with autonomous power for governing and controlling the Basketball in India, and then they are in power to select the players in India for Commonwealth Games, Asiad Games and Olympics Games.

Objective of Basketball Federation of India
Basketball Federation of India (BFI) is responsible for the development and promotion of the sport at all levels. Basketball Federation of India manages all the national level basketball operations in India.

Management of Basketball Federation of India
Basketball Federation of India is involved in organizing training camps and national tournaments, and in preparing Indian teams for both men and women international competition in various age categories. The national team of India is also called Young Cagers.

History of Basketball Federation of India
Basketball Federation of India organised the first national level tournaments in India in 1934. The India national basketball team became a member of FIBA in 1936. The governing body of Basketball Federation of India was formed in 1950. Poonam Mahajan is the President of Basketball Federation of India. She is also the first woman President of Basketball Federation of India. The current head of Basketball Federation of India is R.S. Gill. In India, the game of basketball started its journey in 1930 when it was played for the first time. The first Indian National Championship for men was conducted in 1934 in New Delhi. The Basketball Federation of India (BFI), which controls the game in India was formed in 1950. Throughout history, Indians learned to appreciate the game because of its fast scoring and intense activity from the beginning until the end. Basketball Federation of India is considered as one of the widely played sports in India. India is one those first few countries in the history of basketball that adopted the game within a few years of its inception and its teams actually consisted of five players on the court.

Credits of Basketball Federation of India
Basketball Federation of India promotes Indian basketball players to many national and international tournaments. They also won several trophies for their country. There are 17 Indian basketball players, who have been honoured by the Government of India through the Arjuna Award. 2 players were bestowed with Dhyan Chand Awards for lifetime achievement.