Excelsior Sports Correspondent
Srinagar, Oct 16: Ishrat Akther, a basketball player from north Kashmir’s Baramulla has been selected for the team India and is going to be a part of the team for the upcoming Basketball Tournament.
She informed about her selection through a Tweet in which she said: “I have been selected to #Team #India, in the Selection Trials held at Srinagar, to represent India in the International Wheelchair Basketball Tournament. Thank you all for your best wishes and support.”
Ishrat (25) told Excelsior that the trials were held on October 2, in Srinagar, and she was today informed about her selection to the team. “I feel great about it; I am happy and feel equally lucky to be part of the Indian Basketball team,” she said.
She said that in district Baramulla, the necessary facilities were not available and that the Chinar Naujawan Club in Baramulla provided her with a coach and a basketball court. “They (club) did it because we didn’t have such a facility available here in the district,” she said.
Ishrat started playing basketball in the year 2018 and since then she has been proving her skills on various platforms with active support from the Chinar Naujawan Club, especially 52-RR stationed in Baramulla.
In her message to the youth, she said that hard work, determination, and courage hold the key for everyone. “I gave my 100 percent, ensured that I work hard and today the result is in front of you; no matter what, you need support but without hard work, one reaches nowhere,” she said.
It is to be noted here that Ishrat has played basketball internationally and has been instrumental in the establishment of J&K’s first female wheelchair basketball team. In addition to being an athlete, she has also won several awards which brought her name and fame.
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