World Cup hopes on the line as India hoopsters get ready for Jordan exam

BENGALURU: The stage is set. The biggest names of India basketball including Satnam Singh, Amjyot Singh and Amritpal Singh among others are ready for the World Cup Asia qualifier against Jordan at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium on Friday. They will also face Lebanon on Monday, making the next few days an important one for the team. With India having lost their first two matches against Lebanon and Syria in November, their upcoming matches are essentially do-or-die encounters.

The hosts, who underwent an intense three-week camp in the city, are on the back-foot but have welcomed the above names with open arms. Both Amjyot (NBA G League in USA) and Amritpal (NBL in Australia) could play crucial roles.

Despite not having much time to practice with the team, Amjyot is not too perturbed with it as he has been playing with the same bunch for some years now. This match is extremely special for the forward, who is playing his first match for India after being drafted in the G League.

“I’m really excited. It’s my first tournament since I went to the NBA G League. I have been playing with the national team for a lot of time so it’s not a difficult thing (to play with the team now). I know each and every player and also know what we are capable of,” Amjyot told reporters.

It does not come as a surprise when the talk in the India basketball camp has been about the duo. However, it is a team game, and all other players need to come to the party to break Jordan’s unbeaten streak and keep that momentum going against Lebanon too.

“Their (Amjyot and Amritpal) arrival will definitely make a huge difference to the team. They are star players. But the other players are doing well too. (Aravind) Annadurai, Satnam (Singh) and (Ashpreet Singh) Bhullar are there and we have youngsters too who are getting a chance. They will do well in this game,” said interim coach Rajinder Singh.

India have left no stone unturned to come all guns blazing on Friday. Jordan are a team whose main weapon is the fast break. That weapon is accentuated thanks to their guard Darquavis Lamar Tucker, who leads the scoring chart with 23.5 points per game. “They like fast-break attacks and we’ve planned a strategy for that. We will first try to stop the fast break. Their outside players are more effective. Their tall players are not so effective,” added Rajinder.

It certainly looks like India have prepared well for what promises to be a stiff test. Will they be able to ace it?

GROUP C RESULTS

Syria 72 - 109 Jordan
Lebanon 107 - 72 India
India 57 - 74 Syria
Jordan 87 - 83 Lebanon

ashimsunam@newindianexpress.com