Debutante Indian netball team hopes to make a mark in Commonwealth Games

For a country that will make its netball debut at the Commonwealth Games, medal hopes are not too high for India but the hosts would look to give a fight and cause a few upsets when they take the court during the October 3-14 mega-event here.

Indian netball team has never featured in the Commonwealth Games and since, out of the 12 countries which play the sport, India figures at the bottom, it would take more than a miracle to achieve a medal.

But when the unheralded group of young girls from India step out at the Thyagaraj Stadium, they are game for a good fight and create an upset or two.

"The team has put in a lot of hard work in its preparation in the last two years and we are hoping to create some upsets and improve our rankings in the Games," said chief coach Panchali Tatke, who took over the reins from Sri Lanka's Mary Mercia Lourdes Jayasekera.

The Indian team went for a three-week exposure tour to Australia during February-March this year but could not play against their national side.

In July, India settled for the fourth position in the seventh Asian Youth Netball Championship after losing the play-off to Singapore and Tatke hoped Indians will perform well against powerhouses such as Australia, England and New Zealand during the event.

"We finished eighth in the 2008 Youth Asian Championship but this year we were fourth. Even last year in senior Asian Championship in July, we didn't do well but this time in India in June, we won the series 5-0," she said.

"So we are improving as a team. The team lacks in exposure and experience as they have never played big teams like Australia. So I feel the Games will be a challenge as well as an opportunity.

"A good performance will hopefully translate into more exposure and more support from the federation, government and sponsors, which will help netball grow in India," she said.

The core group of 16 players is currently conducting its morning training sessions at the Genesis Global School in Noida. The venue has a wooden court on which the game is actually played.

The evening sessions are conducted at the Thyagaraj Stadium, the competition venue.

"We are now concentrating on team combinations, tactics and also watching the team's videos to train the girls for real match-like situations," Tatke said.

Originating in the USA and England at the turn of the 19th century, netball came to India in the last three decades, but it still remains a largely unknown sport in the country.

Compared to traditional powerhouses such as Australia, England and New Zealand, where players start training as early as six, India remains a greenhorn.

Whatever little recognition India has got in the sport, is because of former coach Mary Mercia who was associated with the team for more than two and a half years.

Loudes had hand-picked many girls from other sports for the camps, depending on their height. Players like Shirleen Limaye, who was a basketball player earlier and had represented India at the Asian Championships, is one such example.

But after Mary left, citing illness of her son, with a little over a month left for the Games, it was a difficult time for the team.

"It was a big setback for the team. She was experienced and the team loved her. After she left, the players were morally down and it was a big task to keep their moral high but we have never allowed their training to suffer," Tatke said.