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Rewards for a hard attack
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After the success of the Kerala sub-juniors in the Softball Nationals, the focus must now be on seniors, says STAN RAYAN.
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OFFENCE IS the best form of defence, they say. With their defence being rather suspect the Kerala girls went on an attacking mode at the recent Sub-junior Softball Nationals in Rajasthan and came back triumphant.
Kerala's attack was so strong that its opponents were literally begging for mercy at the Nationals.
"We won almost all the games, including the semifinals against Rajasthan, with the mercy rule. Which means games are stopped once a team gains a ten point lead," said the Kerala coach Shahul Hameed.
Kerala whipped Rajasthan 11-1 in the semifinals and Punjab 19-11 in the final.
Rajasthan gave Kerala its maiden victory in the Sub-junior Nationals. After finishing runner-up at the last two editions, the team was third time lucky.
With Kerala girls also winning the Junior Nationals a few months ago and the Mahatma Gandhi University stunningly taking both the men's and women's all-India varsities titles in Kolencherry, this year has been a very fruitful one for the State softballers.
For a change, the climate suited Kerala.
"The heat was a big problem during the last few editions since the championship used to be held in April or May," said Shahul, who is also the joint secretary of the Kerala Softball Association.
This time, the pleasant October weather lifted the team to an august performance.
Fast running and smart fielding also stood Kerala in good stead in Rajasthan. And despite the hard work, the Kerala sub-juniors, being fit, were able to last the distance.
Kerala was down in the first two innings of the five-inning final but the team bounced back strongly and tamed Punjab in the last three.
"Aleena, R. G. Remya and Ransy stood out. And the team jelled nicely," said Shahul.
With Shahul regularly organising district championships, softball is quite active in Ernakulam despite its low profile.
Five of the State team's nine members, including captain Rancy Khader, hail from the district.
With the sub-junior and junior girls titles under its belt, the State now needs to concentrate on its seniors.
Kerala is the current South Zone champion but in the Senior Nationals its best is a semifinal spot.
"We have work to do," said the coach.
And this time, the seniors can pick up a few tips from the juniors.
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