RAJESH
RAVINDRAN
HYDERABAD
Two
years ago, if you had asked anyone about the popularity of darts in Andhra
Pradesh, the picture would not be rosy. Not anymore. The game has suddenly
leapt on the popularity charts with many shooting those tiny arrows on
to the board.
A look at the participants' list at the 5th State Darts Championship being
held at the Nizam Club is evidence that the sport is growing in popularity.
About 45 players from different age groups are vying for top honours.
The veterans are not too far behind in the race for the cup.
State women's champion Sushmitha Verma is amazed by the growing popularity
of darts. "Two years ago there were not many takers even for the
State championship, but look at the list now," she says.
With the increased numbers, "the level of competition too has considerably
gone up," she says.
That the sport does not require one to run for hours or expend too much
energy is one of the reasons why Sushmitha thinks darts are catching up.
Also, "there are no restrictions on how you deliver the dart. One
can learn darts easily and can enjoy it from the very first attempt,"
says Sushmitha, who is also a National level archer.
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The
increasing number of entries for the State
championship points to the fact that darts have caught up with the Hyderabadis.
The popularity is bound to rise with national and international events
planned this year
The rules are pretty simple too. "You are allotted 301 points in
singles. In doubles, it is 501points. All you have to do is cut the maximum points by hitting specific
targets on the board," Sushmitha explains.
Eleven-year-old Sohima came to the club along with her father for a swim,
got attracted by the publicity banners at the venue and promptly registered
herself. And, guess what, she is already into the final of the juniors
category.
"I was curious to try my hand at darts and discovered that each time
I threw, they landed in better positions. It's great to make the final
on your debut... I guess I have all the luck," she said.
Sohima lost to Divya Rani in the title round but still went home a happy
girl.
Having made a base in the State, Andhra Pradesh is now planning to give
stiff competition to Maharashtra in the ensuing Nationals to be held in
the city on June 9. AP Darts Association (APDA) secretary E. Venkat Ram
Reddy is confident that AP will come out flying at the national meet.
"We have been training.really hard. We also expect to see a good fight for the men's national champion
title
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when Hyderabad's Nitin will try to dethrone Maharashtra's Ashfaque
Sayed. Nitin was runner-up to Ashfaque in the last Nationals but he blanked
the champion 3-0 in a best of five series," he says.
Now, "we have heard that Ashfaque is practicing 12 hours a day to retain
his title," he says.
Unlike other sports, most of the organisers of this State event are participants
too. Mr Reddy himself had gone to Nizam Club for lunch and plunged into
the sport two years ago. From that day he has been working to popularise
the sport besides practicing it daily.
The sport is addictive as well. "Yes there is, but I would say it's
a healthy one," Mr Reddy says.
"You improve your concentration and you are more relaxed when you play
the game. It improves your mathematical skills and improves your analytical
ability when you plan to reduce your allotted points the most easiest way
possible after each attempt. That means you are focussed all the time,"
said Mr Reddy.
Now, to provide more exposure, the APDA is conducting an international event,
the Hyderabad Open, in September as a tune-up to the World Championships
to be held in October in Amsterdam.
Players from Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Australia have confirmed
their participation in the Hyderabad Open, Mr Reddy says.
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