EXCLUSIVE: Not NBA pre-season, a domestic league will help Indian basketball - Former Indian captain Anitha Pauldurai

India's most experienced women's basketball player, and former captain of Indian women's national basketball team, Anitha Pauldurai believes that the latest NBA’s detour to India has given a new impetus to basketball in the country. She has observed that this tour has brought a discussion about the sport in India and people have started to take it seriously.

Anitha, who holds the record of playing for the Indian national team for 18 years (2000-2017) is the first and only Indian woman to have played nine Asian Basketball Confederation (ABC) championships continuously representing the national squad. The legendary player asserts that over the years, basketball has gained some popularity in India. Anitha, in an exclusive interview with The Bridge, quips:

Earlier, in India, basketball was considered as a stylish game, and people used to think of us as showing off. But now they finally see it as a sport, not merely as a 'game', so this is a major change in mindset I would say. Owing to the NBA, people are following basketball, and many are talking about it.

The first-ever NBA game happened in India on Friday, and it did not disappoint, as the two top NBA teams, Sacramento Kings and Indiana Pacers, put on a show at the NSCI Dome in Mumbai. Some breath-taking basketball was on as Indiana Pacers edged past Sacramento Kings 132-131 in a thrilling contest, in what was NBA's debut game in India, the first pre-season game ahead of the upcoming season.

After the regulation time ended at 118-118, the match was decided in the extra five minutes when the Pacers, who were trailing throughout the match, went ahead for the first time and managed to eke out a close win.

Anitha, who has a record of winning 30 medals in Basketball National Championship, could also feel the NBA fever back at her city. She remarked, "Even from Chennai, I could see the NBA fever gripped people. Many school-going kids bought tickets for the event and went to Mumbai. So I think the pre-games were a huge success."

Anitha is the youngest ever to captain the senior national team at the age of 19 and went on to captain the team for eight years. In August 2012, she was selected to play for an international women professional league in Thailand. She has played a number of international tournaments including big-ticket events such as the Asian Championship, Commonwealth Games 2006 and Asian Games 2010. She also coached the Indian U-16 girls' team. She nurses the opinion that although many Indian players get the opportunity to play outside, it won't help the Indian basketball team to thrive unless Indian Basketball has its own league.

In the recently concluded FIBA Women's Asian Cup, the Indian team lost all the matches they played in A-Division tournament and were again demoted to B-Division. Anitha concluded saying:

When I coached the U-16 team, three to four girls got the opportunity to play in USA via NBA India, So yes, it's good thing, this will change the Basketball culture in India but the only thing is, I want this to be even more professional in coming days, have our own league which will give more recognition and job opportunities to the players.

Several NBA players have visited India is a last couple of years, yet the Indian basketball ecosystem hasn't improved much when compared to other countries. Now, the NBA is hoping to cash in on the massive market, and if the NBA Commissioner Adam Silver is to be believed, India can have its very own NBA league in the near future. If such leagues come into existence, we can hope a new share of interest is developing around the sports.