India overpowered Sri Lanka 93-44 to retain the South Asian Basketball (SABA) Championship title here on Sunday. The champion, undefeated in all five fixtures, booked a spot in the FIBA Asian Championship to be held in Hunan (China) later this year.
In the title-deciding clash at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium indoor courts, the Lankans were forced to resort to tough jump shots, as the Indian centres Aravind Annadurai and Rikin Pethani (eleven rebounds and four blocks) owned the paint. For when the athletic Sri Lankans drove to the basket, they were shut down by the bigger Indians.
On the offensive end, Annadurai was unstoppable. The Tamil Nadu player, equipped with both a soft touch and power, finished with 22 points and four assists. Pratham Singh (17 points) was effective on the fast-breaks, streaking through the lanes and finishing strong.
“This was an important tournament victory, because it was achieved without our key players — Amjyot Singh, Amritpal Singh, Satnam Singh and others. It was good to see our younger players (which included five debutantes) perform in their absence,” Pratham said.
Asked about his team’s chances at the Asian Championship, the Rajasthan shooting guard said: “We lost narrowly to the big teams in our previous attempt. This time, we will do better.”
Basketball Federation of India President K. Govindaraj announced a cash award of Rs. 35,000 for the Indian team. The side is grouped with Iran, Malaysia and Japan at Hunan.
The results: Sri Lanka 76 (Randima Sooriyaachchi 16, Thimothi Leon 14, Sudesh Ahamed 11) bt Nepal 68 (Ayush Singh 13, Bikram Joshi 12, Sadish Pradhan 12); India 128 (Prasanna Venkatesh 26, Rikin Pethani 21, Akashdeep Hazra 17, A. Arvind 17) bt Maldives 48 (Zakariya Latheef 14); Bangladesh 82 (Mohd. Tareq Aziz 26, Mithun Biswas 18, Mithun Sarkan 17) bt Bhutan 70 (Rinchen Dorji 21, Tashi Tendhar 12); India 93 (Aravind Annadurai 22, Pratham Singh 17, Joginder Singh 13, Narender Grewal 12) bt Sri Lanka 44 (Praneeth Udumalagala 13); Maldives 97 (Mohd. Zilaal 18, Firaash Ahmed 16, Ibrahim Ilyas 13, Ibrahim Rashwan 12, Aushan Ahmed 10) bt Bhutan 55 (Wangchuck Chimi 11, Wangchuk Karma 11).
Final standings: 1. India, 2. Sri Lanka, 3. Nepal, 4. Bangladesh, 5. Maldives, 6. Bhutan.
