A Tribute, Long Due !!!

I take the opportunity of the ongoing Universal Basketball Alliance (UBA), to present a tribute which  has been a due since long to a person who has played such an important role in my life. Some people just arrive into your life without any prior notice, and stay. And I’m very glad that this person, with whom my interaction just started as a mere ‘coach-pupil’ and then slowly but very strongly graduated to Well-wisher, then a friend and finally as a brother! And he is none other than the Charismatic, Who’s jaw dropping moves on the court need no introduction  its none other than the skipper of Hyderabad Sky: Prasad Salla!!!

Our meeting happened out of sheer accident (albeit, a good one) in one of the public basketball courts (which eventually became my home). I had just joined college then and had picked up the ball after  a long gap. I was playing basketball just for the love of it and had very little technical know-how of the game. Since our college did not have a court then, so a tournament meant that we teammates dropped by at nearest public courts for practice.  It was here that I first saw this person, who was already drenched in sweat by the time we came. He used to continuously shoot, practice his moves, take a break, repeat and by the time we finished our so called ‘hard practice’ he was still going on. Almost a week passed by and one day myself and a friend decided to play a little longer. As the other team-mates left we continued to play 1-on-1 and finally stopped when we thought it was ‘bad-light’. Then at this point we got to see what was happening on the other end of the court. This ‘person’ was still shooting in almost darkness and once he finished his routine with the ball, cycles of push-ups, crunches and sprints followed, endlessly.

The next day, we were back to practice with our team, and trying to play with the best of our ‘negligible knowledge’  we had of game plays. Finally this ‘person’  who probably laughed the entire week watching us dumb-heads play, walks up and says that he’d like to suggest a few moves/plays and we followed his instructions. So far so good. Now he says, “let’s put these moves you've just learnt to practice in a match scenario”. Here, I can assure you that we weren’t good players, but definitely not bad as a team. Coming back, he further adds, “we shall play 1 on 5”. Yes us 5 against just him!!  This statement stumped us clean.  Anyway what followed next was his unforgettable display of incredible talent, flawless skill and sheer athleticism.  The next day he ups the ante to 1 on 8 and we lost, as usual. Ladies and Gentlemen, that’s Prasad for you!

We lost the tournament that we were preparing for, but then it dawned on me that if I had to realize my dream of playing well, I needed a coach. And I exactly knew who that should be. At that point, apart from the name and team he plays for, I knew nothing of him. To my bad-luck, I visit the same public courts to get hold of him and he’s not there. The same result every single day. Finally, after  a month or so I bump into a team-mate of his and request his number. I call him up and I ask him if I could meet him. He gladly agrees and that one meeting, from that point on changed everything else for me. He starts to teach me basketball from the very fundamentals and his repeated emphasis on strong basics, which I always hated, but nevertheless followed. I realized the importance of these fundamentals, years later when I played on a higher level, in a foreign land. 

This man has an immense level of patience off-court and if you take him for granted, get ready to face exactly the opposite on-court. Make an unfair play, and he beats you down to the ground with the ball, literally. Talk trash to him and he answers first with the ball and then with his Devil’s level of sarcasm!! He teaches you how to beat him, but yet beats you time after time, even after letting out his secrets! Such is the level of confidence of this hoopster

He’s the perfect example of ‘age is just a number’  and this ‘Scoring machine’ manages to nail all his shots, without any excuses that we mortals usually make:

-       “I’m too tired”. Beats youngsters half of his age.

-       “I don’t have shoes”. He plays barefoot, even today.

-       “The ball is out of shape”. He does ‘nothing but the net’ with the same

-       “I don’t have my shorts”. He breaks your ankle,  in his jeans.

These are just a few examples of his prowess when it comes to the game of basketball. Not many know that he’s a natural athlete who covers almost every other game with equal ease. Football, Badminton, Cricket, Table Tennis,….. he got them all covered!!  Off the court, he’s none less than a celeb. And mind you that this status is no where related to his exploits on-court. He’s pure mischief and the laughter that follows will leave your stomach in pain, each time!!! Never to say ‘no’ to anyone who comes to him for help and does everything he can, within his reach and stretches further!

More than a great hoopster, he’s a wonderful person at heart, who has been playing the different roles in his life as: a son, a brother, a husband, a father, a player and a coach with effortless aplomb!!

As your pupil, I only thank you for one and only one thing: for taking me under your tutelage! And life has never been the same for me, ever again!!! Today I dedicate every: win, high performance play, impossible shot and every DUNK that I ever made to YOU!!

Lastly, not to forgot, I’m still training to beat you in our forever 1-on-1 which you’ve beaten me every single time till date. And yes the day I beat you and when you buy me that beer we always bet on, that beer will be the best tasting one! Get ready coach, I'm coming!!

Cheers to you bro !!

Cheers to Basketball !!!