Anitha realises pro-league dream

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Not long ago, Anitha Pauldurai dreaded that her career was destined to end without realising her ultimate dream of playing in a professional basketball league.

At the fag end of her career — by her own admission — Anitha has finally managed to tick that box in her impressive CV.

The veteran Tamil Nadu hoopster, who has been a familiar face in the national team’s roster for a decade, is brimming with joy ever since she returned from her successful debut at the Thailand Basketball League. The 27-year-old represented Bangkok-based Sripatum University that finished third in the league.

“Hadn’t I got this offer from Thailand, the disappointment of never playing in a professional league would be haunting me after my retirement,” said Anitha, an employee of Southern Railway.

Anitha has played a number of international tournaments including big-ticket events such as the Asian championships and 2006 Commonwealth Games. But the prolific playmaker says the pro league was a different experience.

“All I had was a couple of days training with the team before we went into the tournament. The biggest hurdle was communication as none of the local players spoke English.

But we gelled remarkably well on and off the court. The competition was high on intensity and players showed good team spirit,” said Anitha, who had her friend Geethu Anna Jose for company in the same team.

Apart from the two Indians, the league had players from the USA and Canada. “During the pool stage, the teams were restricted to one foreign player per side, but it became two in the knock-out stage.

To keep the towering Geethu at bay, our semifinal opponents had to rope in an American girl in a hurry. So fierce was the rivalry among the teams and they were ready to splurge money to improve the standard of the league,” said Anitha, who was on a lucrative one-month contract with Sripatum University.

The contract came as a reward for the duo’s stupendous show at the Asian Beach Games in China, where the Indian team won gold medal in three-on-three competition.

“We were unbeaten and upset a strong Chinese team in the final. Immediately after the tournament, I got a call from Sripatum University and the offer was irresistible,” Anitha said.

Anitha says India should take a leaf out of Thailand and launch a professional league soon. “If Thailand can, why can’t India?”