Basketball is like a religion to me - Tharanga

Angu RAJENDRAN

She is not a regular, giggly fifteen year- old. She is confident, practical, mature and loves basketball with an unbelievable passion like most other players in her Gateway College team. She is Tharanga Gunasekara - the Most Valuable Player of the Under 19 International Schools Basketball Championships concluded recently.

Tharanga at fifteen has received this award twice since she started playing basketball three years ago. "I was a complete zero when I started playing at twelve," says Tharanga. "My coach Tharindu made me the player that I am today. Most of all he inculcated a passion for basketball in my whole Gateway team. I suppose that's because he loves basketball so much himself. He is so dedicated to our team."

Coach Tharindu is quite a hero at Gateway College where he trains the boys and girls teams and all the age groups right from beginner level. Surprisingly this coach does not just teach the children how to play basketball; he teaches them how to make basketball their obsession in life.

"When I started playing for the first time, Gateway College did not even have a girls team, so the same fifteen of us played in the Under 13, under 15, under 17 and Under 19 International Schools tournaments," says Tharanga laughing.

That was real fun. The experience was unbelievable. Our coach told us to just go out there and play. And to our own surprise, we won the Under 13 tournament, the year that I started playing.

What makes you girls so aggressive?

"We play with the boys teams almost everyday," says Tharanga. We have practices together and we play matches together so we really are forced to toughen up. Tharanga's brother Danushka plays for Gateway's boys team. "He is an expert player and I watch him play a lot and try to imitate him. Sometimes I get close to replicating his game," says Tharanga of her brother.

What do they do when they don't have matches or have just finished a tournament? "We help the juniors. We rebound for them. We teach them whatever we know.

We want them to become as good as us. And when we teach, obviously we improve. Our coach Tharindu gives each of the seniors like me a junior player to train.

I suppose you teach best what you most need to learn. This is such a learning experience for both the seniors and the juniors. Usually we play in school till about eight or eight thirty every day."

What does Tharanga plan to do in the future? Oh! My aim is to get into the national team. That is all. I go for the girls' youth team practices every Sunday and I dream of playing for Sri Lanka. I will think about life and what to do as a career after I achieve my basketball goal," she says.

Tharanga is academically very sound. She has learnt to balance her studies with basketball. Facing the O levels in May 2011 does not really worry her.

"Basketball is my religion and I worship it. I am sure I cannot go wrong," she smiles. Tharanga Gunasekara, is yet another victim of the Basketball mania that has gripped youngsters of today. Another youngster is on her path to success through hard work and effort where she will learn to accept disappointment gracefully and success with humility.