Youngster takes big strides

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Karan Joshua is in the process of giving a definite shape to the journey that he began some four years ago from the Frank Anthony Public School basketball court. A place in the Karnataka side for the under-16 nationals has come as a just reward for his diligence, giving a huge fillip to his ambitions.

The 15-year old had to ward off his strong fascination for cricket and, now, he believes that his decision to take up basketball was the correct one.

“I started playing cricket but never got to represent any team. It was fun to do when in school at my age, so I did. When my friends and family persuaded me that with my height I should be playing basketball I chose to do it,” said the 6’4’’ lad ahead of the Youth Championships beginning in Mumbai from Thursday.

There were hints of uncertainty in the early days, but Karan says the encouragement of his coaches Charles Sampath and Philip Meakin, also his Physics lecturer, prompted him to focus more on the sports. The latter also made Karan aware of the importance of physical fitness to succeed in this fast-paced game.

“Coach Sampath played a vital role in helping me to device moves and improve my game, but coach Meakin’s direction to fitness has guided me to where I stand now and I will continue to work hard to improve my standards.”

Still, his skill level was not up to the scratch to merit a place in the age-group State squads. But Karan was determined to overcome this hazard, training for hours together with friends who helped him to finetune the finer points of the game.

Karan opines that those sessions with friends and other players helped him to understand the intricacies of the sport and its demands on an athlete. “I played for hours at a stretch with friends and guys who were just around on any court. The two of the my friends that I would thank the most are Chhotu (Mohan Benjamin) and Josh (Joshua Noel). We used to play in Koramangla a lot and these guys helped me out a great deal with moves involved in playing post,” the power-forward said.

Karan says watching the action from the National Basketball Association (NBA) has helped him to add more dimensions to his game. “I add a lot of inputs to my game from the NBA. I love the league and the level at which they play. It inspires me in many ways to move forward and who knows maybe one day I’ll play in that league.”

Big step

The next big step in his career came when he decided to join Indiranagar Basketball Club, putting him under the expert guidance of Yogeshwar, helping him to polish his impressive skills and making him a better player. “I chose to play for IBBC merely out of convenience and I really don't think it was a bad decision. Few days after the camp I got a chance to play for the team in the under-16 State youth championships and I put up a good show,” said Karan.

The lanky forward bagged a tournament high 27 points against SAI, Dharwad, though in a losing cause, in a fine display of his abilities.

Since that day he set his eyes on Karnataka jersey and the selectors too spotted the skills of this lad. They selected him for the 20-day State camp at the Sri Kanteerava Stadium under coach Mohan Kumar, and subsequently Karan made his way into the final squad.

“I expected it and so did my friends but that moment was just brilliant. I really cannot believe it happened to me. I mean after all those years of hard work, the moment was far sweeter than I first thought it would be. So everything is falling in place,” he said.
Karan has impressed all with his ability to learn and adapt, now it is time for him to start travelling to the next level.