Basketball team tip-off their campaign at 2011 FIBA Asia Basketball Championship in China
DELHI, SEPTEMBER 14, 2011: Led by Coach Kenny Natt, India’s Senior Men’s team kicks off its 26th FIBA Asia Basketball Championship (ABC) campaign tomorrow with a game against Lebanon at Hongshan. Pitting 16 of Asia’s top basketball playing nations against each other, the 26th FIBA ABC will be held in the city of Wuhan in China from September 15-25, 2011.
The Indian squad arrived in China on September 8th and has since been participating in practice matches.
This championship will be the biggest challenge so far for India’s new American basketball coach Kenny Natt, formerly a head coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Upon his departure, Natt said “I expect the Indian team to be competitive every night. We will concentrate on one game at a time. I know that we will be a well prepared squad and I aim that, through our performances, we can earn the respect of our opponents.”
India’s 12-player squad includes 15 year old basketball prodigy, Satnam Singh Bhamara, India’s youngest team member. Satnam, an IMG Reliance Scholar, trains at the IMG Basketball Academy in Florida, USA and made his debut with India’s senior team in the Middle Asia Zone Qualifying Round in July.
Mr. Harish Sharma, the CEO of the Basketball Federation of India (BFI), expressed his enthusiasm for the upcoming competition. “The FIBA Asia Basketball Championship is always the biggest international challenge in the calendar for India’s senior side. We are confident that, led by our new coach, India will work hard in each game at the tournament against Asia’s best sides.”
India, who finished 13th in the previous FIBA ABC (held in 2009), qualified for this year’s tournament after winning the Middle Asia Zone Qualifying Round against SAARC teams in mid-July in New Delhi. India are ranked 50th in the FIBA World Rankings for Men.
India has been placed in Group A at the championship, along with 2007 runners-up Lebanon, Malaysia, and Korea. Other teams participating in the tournament are: Qatar, Uzbekistan, Chinese Taipei, reigning champions Iran, Japan, Indonesia, Syria, Jordan, Philippines, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and hosts China.
The Indian contingent will also consist of a coach, a trainer, and two FIBA referees for the tournament.
Preliminary Round Schedule for India:
- 15 Sep 2011, Thursday, 8 PM local (5:30 PM IST) : India vs. Lebanon
- 16 Sep 2011, Friday, 6 PM local (3:30 PM IST): India vs. Malaysia
- 17 Sep 2011, Saturday, 1:30 PM local (11:00 AM IST): India vs. Korea
The second round of the tournament is scheduled to begin on September 19th, Monday, and the final round will be held from September 23rd-25th, 2011.
This is the roster that will represent India at the 26th FIBA Asia Basketball Championship:
Amrit Pal Singh (Punjab)
Amjyot Singh (Punjab)
Dishant Vipul Shah (Gujarat)
Hareesh Koroth (Tamil Nadu)
Jagdeep Singh Bains (Punjab)
Narender Grewal (Services)
Prakash Mishra (Indian Railways)
Satnam Singh Bhamara (IMG Academy / Punjab)
Talwinderjit Singh Sahi (Punjab)
Trideep Rai (Uttarakhand)
Vishesh Bhriguvanshi (Indian Railways)
Yadwinder Singh (Indian Railways)
Head Coach: Kenny Natt
Coach: Rajinder Singh
Trainer: Pawan Kumar
FIBA Referee: Amarjot Singh Mavi
FIBA Referee: Raj Narayan Patro
The contingent will be accompanied by Manager/Chef-de-Mission Mr. Om Prakash and Delegate Mr. Shakti Sinh Gohil
The tournament can be followed via the official website of Wuhan 2011 < http://wuhan2011.fibaasia.net/Default.aspx> and will be broadcast online on FIBA TV < http://www.fibatv.com/asia?WT.mc_id=oc_topbanner>
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