India men's national basketball team explained

Country:India
National Fed:Basketball Federation of India
Fiba Zone:FIBA Asia
Joined Fiba:1936
Coach:Scott Flemming
Nickname:Indian Cagers[1]
Oly Appearances:1
Oly Medals:None
Zone Championship:FIBA Asia Cup
Zone Appearances:26
Zone Medals:None
Zone Championship2:SABA Championship
Zone Appearances2:6
Zone Medals2: Gold : (2002, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2021)
Zone Championship3:South Asian Games
Zone Appearances3:5
Zone Medals3: Gold : (1987, 1991, 1995, 2019)
Silver: (2010)
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The India men's national basketball team represents India in international men's basketball. It is controlled by Basketball Federation of India.[2] The team made significant improvements as the sports of basketball is becoming more popular.[3]

A 1936 founding member of FIBA Asia,[4] India has one of Asia's longest basketball traditions. Throughout its history, Team India qualified for the FIBA Asia Championship 26 times and is placed in the top five in appearances in this tournament. Further, India's basketball team won four gold medals and one silver medal at the South Asian Games and became the most successful team in the South Asian region. India have also won the SABA Championship six times.[5] Team India celebrated its victory at the 2014 Lusofonia Games after they finished the tournament with a 4–0 record as they beat 11–time African Champions Angola in the final.[6]

Its most famous moment came at the 2014 FIBA Asia Cup with the win against home favorites and most successful Asian team China by seven points.[2] [7] This win has been labelled as the biggest basketball win in the nation's history.[8]

History

India appeared at the international stage for the first time ever at the Asian Games in the 1951 edition and the Asian Championships at the 1965 Asian Basketball Championship where it started out as moderately competitive. India became a regular at the event and had their most successful tournament in 1975 when the team even reached the final four.[9] [10]

Plagued by a lack of popularity and support for basketball at home, at times, India faded into oblivion and only had a handful of successful performances.[11] Its most noteworthy tournament appearance was at the 1980 Summer Olympics when the team got its chance to represent Asia due to the cancellations of some teams who took part in the American-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics.[12] A few of the world's top basketball powers at that time (such as the United States and Canada) withdrew from the tournament. India finished 12th out of 12 in the Olympics after getting knocked out in the preliminary round by losing all three of their matches and then losing all five of their matches in the Classification round.[13]

While the results did not go India's way one game in particular caught the attention of basketball fans worldwide. India played against the Australian Team, one of the world's top basketball teams. India, which was made up solely of voluntary basketball players competed against the elite team of Australia for almost the whole game until it finally ceded to the Boomers 75–93 after leading at halftime 41–37.[14]

Many Indian players also made headlines while in the [Soviet Union] as well. Ajmer Singh gained worldwide attention as he was amongst the top 10 shooters there and became the 10th best pivot player in the tournament there.[15] The late 90s saw the emergence of Sozhasingarayer Robinson, the first Indian basketball player who gained considerable international attention. Robinson led India to a surprising victory over South Korea, one of Asia's top teams.[16] In 2005, however, Robinson complained that the structure and support for basketball in India was still mediocre and government officials did not do enough to support the sport. As a protest, he retired from the national team.[17]

At the 2011 FIBA Asia Championship India was coached by former Sacramento Kings head coach Kenny Natt.[18] In 2012, former NBA D-League and U.S. college coach, Scott Flemming, took over the team. Under his supervision, the team won the South Asia Championship in 2014. India had two wins and finished 3 places higher (11th) in the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship than in 2011.[19] In 2014, the Young Cagers (as team India is often nicknamed) won the Lusofonia games with wins over Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde, and Angola in the gold medal game. This was Team India's first title ever in a non-Asian competition. In the 2014 FIBA Asia Cup India pulled off the biggest win in their 80-year history by defeating China on their home court 65–58. The establishment of a professional league was a major step in continuing this recent success the Indian team had experienced.[20] [21] India continued their dominance in South Asia by winning further South Asian Championships in 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2021.[22] [23] [24]

Competitive record

FIBA Asia Cup

See main article: FIBA Asia Cup.

width=125Yearwidth=120Rankwidth=35width=35width=35width=35PFwidth=35PAwidth=35PD
1960did not enter
1963
19657th place 7 4 3 491 542 -51
19676th place 9 5 4 709 797-88
19695th place 8 4 4 748 720 +28
19716th place 8 3 5 563 632 -69
19736th place 10 3 7 744902-158
19754th place 8 5 3 754 728 +26
19777th place 9 7 2 957 776+181
19795th place 7 3 4 539 604 -65
19815th place 7 3 4 521 511 +10
19836th place 5 2 3 298 310 -12
198510th place 6 3 3 585 459+126
19876th place 7 2 5 518 608-90
19896th place 6 2 4 472 520-48
199113th place 7 2 5 575 596 -21
1993did not enter
199513th place 8 4 4 537558 -21
199711th place 6 3 3 433409+24
1999did not enter
20018th place 6 1 5 406 508 -102
20038th place 7 2 5 551678 -127
200512th place 7 3 4 545 578 -33
200715th place 7 2 5 468 627 -159
200913th place 5 2 3 371 415 -44
201114th place 5 1 4 283 310 -27
201311th place 8 2 6 532 641 -109
20158th place 9 3 6 669 789-120
201714th place 3 0 3 186 249-63
202216th place 3 0 3 169 305 -136
2025to be determined
Total26/30 178 71 107 13,624 14,772 -1,148

Asian Games

Asian Games
YearHost cityPosition
1951 New Delhi, India4th
1970 Bangkok, Thailand6th
1982 New Delhi, India8th
2006 Doha, Qatar17th
2010 Guangzhou, China11th
2014 Incheon, South Korea9th

Asia Challenge

FIBA Asia Challenge
YearHost cityPosition
2004 Taipei, Taiwan6th
2008 Kuwait City, Kuwait5th
2012 Tokyo, Japan9th
2014 Wuhan, China7th
2016 Tehran, Iran7th

SABA Championship

SABA Championship
YearHost cityPosition
2002 Assam, India1st
2014 Kathmandu, Nepal1st
2015 Bengaluru, India1st
2016 Bengaluru, India1st
2017 Male, Maldives1st
2021 Dhaka, Bangladesh1st

Commonwealth Games

Commonwealth Games
YearHost cityPosition
2006 Melbourne, Australia8th
2018 Gold Coast, Australia8th

South Asian Games

South Asian Games
YearHost cityPosition
1987 Kolkata, India1st
1991 Colombo, Sri Lanka1st
1995 Chennai, India1st
2010 Dhaka, Bangladesh2nd
2019 Kathmandu, Nepal1st

Other tournaments

William Jones Cup

William Jones Cup
YearHost cityPosition
2016 New Taipei, Taiwan9th
2017 Taipei, Taiwan10th

Honours

Intercontinental

Continental

Results and fixtures

2025

Team

2024 roster

Roster for the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers in February 2024.[26]

Past rosters

1980 Olympic Games

finished 12th among 12 teams[27] 1997 Asian Championship

finished 11th among 15 teams

Pankaj Malik, B.S. Gowtham, Gagnesh Kumar, Ashok Kumar, N. Appla Raju, Parmindar Singh, Nishant Kumar, Virendar Joshi, Jaldeep Dhaliwal, D. Swaminathan, Srikant Reddy (Coach: Major N.K. Singh)

1999 Asian Championship

not qualified

2001 Asian Championship

finished 8th among 14 teams

Vinay Kumaryadan, J.Murli, B.J. Jadeja, Mohit Bhandari, S.Sridhar, Parmindar Singh, Ranjeet Singh, Austin Almeida, Sozhasingarayer Robinson, Suresh Ranot, M.S. Sabeer Ahamed, Des Raj (Coach: Keshav Kumar Chansoria)

2003 Asian Championship

finished 8th among 16 teams

Sambhaji Kadam, Gagnesh Kumar, Mihir Pandey, S. Gopinath, S.Sridhar, Parmindar Singh, Muraleekrishna Ravindran, Trideep Rai, Sozhasingarayer Robinson, Riyaz Uddin, Snehpal Singh, Des Raj

2005 Asian Championship

finished 12th among 16 teams

Sambhaji Kadam, Shiv Kumar, Mihir Pandey, Anoop Mukkanniyil, Yadwinder Singh, Rajanna Sanjay Raj, Muraleekrishna Ravindran, Trideep Rai, Sozhasingarayer Robinson, Riyaz Uddin, Talwinderjit Singh, Jagdeep Singh (Coach: Jay Prakash Singh)

2007 Asian Championship

finished 15th among 16 teams

Sambhaji Kadam, Shiv Kumar, Ravikumar Krishnasamy, Anoop Mukkanniyil, Roshan Thankachan Padavetiyil, Rajanna Sanjay Raj, Muraleekrishna Ravindran, Trideep Rai, Dilawar Singh, Riyaz Uddin, Lokesh Yodav, Jagdeep Singh (Coach: Aleksandar Bucan)

2009 Asian Championship

finished 13th among 16 teams

Sambhaji Kadam, Talwinderjit Singh, Hareesh Koroth, Harpalsinh Vaghela, Sunil Kumar Rathee, Vishesh Bhriguvanshi, Prakash Mishra, Vineeth Revi Mathew, Abhilek Paul, Jayram Jat, Dinesh Comibatore, Jagdeep Singh (Coach: Aleksandar Bucan)

2011 Asian Championship

finished 14th among 16 teams2013 Asian Championship

finished 11th among 15 teams2014 Asian Games

finished 12th among 16 teams

2015 FIBA Asia Championship "finished 8th Among 16 qualified teams in Asia "

2016 FIBA Asia Challenge "finished 7th Among 12 qualified teams in Asia "

2017 FIBA Asia Cup[28]

2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup qualification

2022 FIBA Asia Cup qualification

See also

External links

Videos

Notes and References

  1. Web site: The Indian Cagers: Know your Indian men's basketball team . 2 October 2015 .
  2. https://archive.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/FIBA/fibaStru/nfLeag/nfProf.asp?nationalFederationNumber=301
  3. Web site: Basketball becoming popular. https://web.archive.org/web/20210511234206/https://crosarka-basketball.com/latest-nba-news-on-trades/ . dead . 11 May 2021 . 10 May 2021.
  4. Jai Prakash, "Indian basketball team to feature in Dubai tournament", Yahoo Cricket India, 3 June 2014. Retrieved 11 October 2015.
  5. http://www.gz2010.cn/10/0104/13/5S6HG3UF007801VF.html Pakistan basketball team named for 11th South Asian Games
  6. Web site: Lusofonia Games '14: Indian men win historic gold; Women settle for bronze - Ekalavyas | Ekalavyas . 3 May 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150406031319/http://ekalavyas.com/2014/01/27/live-india-vs-angola-men-gold-medal-match/ . 6 April 2015 . dead .
  7. Web site: FIBA LiveStats. www.fibalivestats.com. 1 November 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171209072355/http://www.fibalivestats.com/matches/4142/12/10/59/50lXLHtjAYWWo. 9 December 2017. dead.
  8. Web site: 5th FIBA Asia Cup: India beats China for biggest basketball win in the nation's history - Ekalavyas | Ekalavyas . 3 May 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150504023106/http://ekalavyas.com/2014/07/12/live-india-vs-china-5th-fiba-asia-cup-men/ . 4 May 2015 . dead .
  9. Web site: 1975 Asian Championship for men . FIBA . 26 November 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20091224092729/http://archive.fiba.com/pages/eng/fa/event/p/cid/sid/2447/_/1975_FIBA_Asia_Championship_for_Men/index.html . 24 December 2009 . live .
  10. Web site: Howard tour;NBA archived posts . 4 April 2013 . 9 May 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130509222138/http://www.nba.com/india/news/howard_tour_100804.html . bot: unknown .
  11. Web site: Indian basketball team: A topsy-turvy trail. 9 March 2023.
  12. Web site: The first and last time India played basketball at the Olympics. 9 March 2023.
  13. Web site: Basketball at 1980 Olympics: India's road to qualification, roster, results, top performers and more. 9 March 2023.
  14. http://archive.fiba.com/pages/eng/fa/game/p/gid/10/grid/X/rid/727/sid/2940/tid/301/_/1980_Olympic_Games_Tournament_for_Men/statistic.html
  15. Web site: Indian basketball team at the 1980 Olympics. 10 May 2021.
  16. http://www.taiwanhoops.com/2004/11/stankovic-cup-day-4-robinsons-36-leads.html Taiwan Hoops - Stankovic Cup Day 4 – Robinson's 36 leads India upset Korea, 81-76, taiwanhoops.com, written 24 November 2004, accessed 13 October 2011.
  17. http://www.hindu.com/2007/12/04/stories/2007120411292200.htm The Hindu - Sport / Basketball : Robinson not to play for India, TN, Hindu.com, written 4 Dec 2007, accessed 15 October 2011.
  18. Web site: I'm here to create a superstar, says India's NBA coach Kenny Natt. 1 November 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20121105170018/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-06-14/interviews/29656175_1_basketball-federation-nba-player-coaching-basketball. 5 November 2012. The Times of India. dead.
  19. Web site: 26th FIBA Asia Championship : Schedule & Results . 21 October 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20111019055314/http://wuhan2011.fibaasia.net/ScheduleResults.aspx . 19 October 2011 . dead .
  20. Web site: Indian National Basketball League from January 4. 3 December 2021.
  21. Web site: BFI launch INBL (Indian National Basketball League), aim to take sport to higher standards across all formats. 3 December 2021.
  22. Web site: India Men's Basketball Team Win SABA Championship For Sixth Time. 24 December 2023.
  23. Web site: Indian men's team wins South Asian Basketball Association C'ships for sixth time. 24 December 2023.
  24. Web site: India crowned SABA Championship basketball winners for the sixth time. 24 December 2023.
  25. Web site: India win gold in basketball at Lusofonia Games. The Times of India. 2 December 2023.
  26. Web site: Roster. 25 February 2023. FIBA.
  27. Web site: Former Indian basketball coach Rajan passes away . 10 October 2017.
  28. Web site: India at the FIBA Asia Cup 2017 - FIBA.basketball. FIBA.basketball. 1 November 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171124094156/http://www.fiba.basketball/asiacup/2017/India#%7Ctab=roster. 24 November 2017. live.