Shortcomings catch the eye of basketball federation officials

Deepankar Sharda

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Panchkula, June 10

Hosts of Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG) may claim to provide world-class facilities at Tau Devi Lal Stadium here, but plenty of shortcomings caught the eye of Basketball Federation of India (BAI) officials at the venue hosting basketball matches.

Notably, the main problem was pertaining to the nature of the court chosen for conducting these matches. While basketball matches of all previously held Khelo India Games were conducted on wooden flooring court, the matches here are being conducted on a synthetic flooring court. As per BAI officials, the games should have been conducted on the wooden flooring court, which is also approved by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA).

“I don’t understand this concept. The BAI would not even allot a simple national championship to a state, which doesn’t have a wooden court. Here the state government is conducting matches on a mat floor. The matches of previous Khelo India Games were held on a wooden flooring court, which is an approved way to host matches as per the rules and regulations,” said Chander Mukhi Sharma, general secretary, BFI.

The officials had spotted problems in lighting, equipment and improper air-conditioning at the venue.

“A meeting of the Game Technical Conduct Committee was held before the tournament and we have raised the issue of poor lighting at the court. The organisers added more lights to the venue, but lux are still uneven. This was also spotted by the broadcasters on Thursday. Upright booms are not up to the mark. These were shaking every time the ball hit the ring. In one such incident, a bolt of the upright boom came off, which was later repaired in a nick of time on Thursday,” said Sharma.

One of the officials said: “Yes, there are some issues with the lighting and shadow on the court. Air-conditioners don’t come below 24 degrees. Athletes do feel the heat in the afternoon. For those particular reasons, we have installed desert air coolers.”

Meanwhile, defending their take, one of the spokespersons from the organisers said: “This (synthetic) flooring is the latest invocation, which is widely accepted and approved by the authorities, while the wooden court is known to be the traditional field to organise matches.”

Other Issues noticed

• The main problem was pertaining to the nature of the court chosen for conducting these matches.
• Officials spotted problems in lighting, equipment and improper air-conditioning at the venue.