This year for the 3rd ASA Quarter I had a
hard time choosing what SAISA sport I would do that season. Traditionally I
have tried out for the U19 girls’ basketball team and for the past two years
the sport has been very enjoyable for me. However this year I decided to try
out for a less stressful sport as this is my last year and my academics are
more important than a sport that leaves me too exhausted to work properly at
the end of the day. Therefore this year I chose to try out for the badminton
team.
(Photo credit: Ms Lockwood)
Even though it’s not as popular an activity
as the gendered sports at this school, I found that playing badminton was very
enjoyable as it reminded me of tennis (which I have not played in years) and
because it is a game that not only requires athletic ability and skill but it
is also necessary to create strategies on the spot and play accordingly. In
many of the sports I have played previously, such as with volleyball,
basketball and football, it was not necessary for me to think on my feet or
change a play or strategy at will because of my usually defensive positions (for
example, defender in football and post in basketball). Another difference is
that those are team sports that rely almost entirely on teamwork, but for
badminton the only time teamwork is necessary is when you play with a partner.
(Photo credit: American School of Bombay)
In SAISA there are the team placements and
the individual placements. In these placements are three categories of games an
individual player can enter in and those are singles, doubles and mixed
doubles. And in those categories are sub-categories for player levels; seed 1
to 4. Even though this was my first year playing SAISA badminton (and badminton
in general) I was placed in seed 1 as a learning experience and to lessen the
pressure that comes from being a first time player and focus only on gaining
skills.
(Photo credit: American School of Bombay)
(Photo credit: American School of Bombay)
Needless to say I lost all my singles
matches for the team placement matches but I am happy to say that I improved a
lot during each match as the point differences between myself and my opponents
decreased with every match. This improvement was also evident during the individual
placements as I won a few of my matches before losing during the quarter
finals. Although I am not happy with my performance during the beginning of the
match as the score was 2 to 11, I was able to win back 6 points during a streak
in the second half and this was largely due to using my brain to change and
think up strategies on the spot, like changing the placement of the shuttlecock
at the last second.
(Photo credit: American School of Bombay)
In the end, our school came 3rd
in the team placements and the only individual placement we won was for 3rd
place for the girls’ doubles matches for my partner Rishika and me. The whole
tournament was a lot of fun and a great learning experience. I am also very
happy about finding out that this sport can be played by people of all ages, so
I’ll be able to play badminton for a long time after school.
(Photo credit: American School of Bombay)
(Photo credit: American School of Bombay)
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