There is never a more heart-breaking feeling for a sportsman than being stretchered off the field. Sitting out and watching his team-mates play heightens the agony. Such scenes have been frequent on the country’s basketball scene, demanding a shift from the hard, cement surfaces to the player-friendly indoor wooden courts. While the leading sporting nations rely on technology to make competitions as injury-free as possible, India’s hoopsters sweat it out on cement surfaces, risking their careers along the way.

“It’s a huge issue as far as the Indian hoopsters are considered. They are risking injury when they play on the hard surfaces. Some of the cities in the country have wooden courts. But many states still lack good facilities,” says Serbian Alexander Bucan, the National coach, who is now conducting a national under-14 camp for boys and girls in Bengal.

“The players’ careers will be shortened if you play on hard surfaces. If a youngster is forced into a long lay-off due to injury, it will affect his confidence,” adds Bucan.

In a distressing sequence of events, four of Karnataka’s frontline players were forced to sit out during the State meets —  'A’ Division and the Association Cup — due to injuries caused by poor playing surfaces. The team that suffered most was Vijaya Bank, with three of their key players laid low by injuries.

International Roshan P Thankachan and Srinivas Naik escaped with bruises on the knees and elbows in the 'A' Division title-decider against MEG. Naik was stretchered out in the first quarter after falling on his knees and was asked to take rest for at least two weeks. Thankachan met with the same fate towards the end of the match which the Bankmen lost. Both the players subsequently missed the Association Cup.

“It’s frustrating to get injured and more frustrating to sit out and watch others play,” bemoaned Thankachan.
"Roshan and Naik are recovering well now. They were lucky to escape without fractures. The way both fell on their knees, it looked quite severe. It could have been a huge blow for us,” said Vijaya Bank coach Rajkumar.

Suffering a very serious injury was Rony Zacharia, who tore ligaments on his right ankle during the Federation Cup in Rourkela, Orissa, last month. “The court was painted and was dangerous to play on. Though the organisers did well to remove the painted layer, still it was slippery. I slipped going for a basket and tore my ligament,” said Rony.

MEG’s assistant coach-cum-player Peter John felt basketballers were prone to ankle and toe injuries when they play on hard surfaces without using proper shock-absorbing shoes. Coach of a women's team, echoing the sentiments of other officials, said players were scared of competing on rough surfaces and many were reluctant to give hundred percent effort, fearing injury.

Though Bangalore has good indoor facilities, often, important tournaments are held outdoors, like the ‘A’ Division and the Association Cup. K Govindaraj, secretary of the Karnataka State Basketball Association, said the Association Cup was initially scheduled to be held indoors in Mysore but it was shifted to the Sree Kanteerava outdoor courts owing to the last-minute withdrawal by the Mysore organisers. "We will make sure it will be held on indoor wooden courts next year,” he said. That is indeed good news for basketball fans and players alike.