Basic errors, hard lesson for India cagers in basketball game against Lebanon

BENGALURU : In a sport like basketball, especially at professional level, there is no room for committing basic errors. These include mispasses which mostly results in turnovers. Combine this with depleted India team, which took on Lebanon in the World Cup Asia Qualifier at the Sree Kanteerava indoor stadium here on Monday. The final result was horrendous as India were outsmarted by the visitors at 50-90. Just 24 hours before the match, India’s interim coach Rajinder Singh had expressed the need to minimise errors in important encounters. After losing to Jordan in the last match, India were expected to come up with a much improved game, but things did not go according to the plan. India suffered on both sides of the court, as they scored just 50 points. 

What made the match worse was the number of turnovers. Lebanon took full advantage of it, scoring 20 points from India’s turnover alone. Besides this, team’s shooting was also not up to the mark, with an overall field goal percentage standing at 28.4%. Adding to that, the team was also not fielding to their full strength. The coach did stress on how badly they missed point guard Akilan Pari, who was unavailable due to personal reasons.  

“We did not play the game we would have wanted to. Akilan was a big miss. Lebanon were very aggressive on their defence, and there were mispasses from us as well,” said Rajinder.
Initially, India had started the game well, with Yadwinder Singh scoring the first point of the match. However, Lebanon looked in good form, outscoring the Indian team in the first quarter. The scene did not change in the second quarter as well, with Lebanon running into a 22-point lead at the midway stage. With a healthy lead, it was just a matter of time for Lebanon, who had full control of the game, to complete their double over India. The visitors won the match comfortably. 

Overall, it was a below par performance from India. When key players like Satnam Singh (12 points) and Aravind Annadurai (7) fail to make an impact, the scoreline is not surprising. Contrastingly, four of Lebanon’s players were on double digits. The likes of Ater Majok (17) and Wael Arakji (13) dominated the match with their all-round skills. This is India’s fourth straight loss. With two games remaining, barring a miracle their chances look bleak to progress into the next round. ashim.sunam@newindianexpress.com