UTTARAKHAND (FIBA Asia Champions Cup 2016) - Vishesh Bhriguvanshi has been a cornerstone of the Indian men's national basketball team since he debuted at the senior level in 2009. His first few years on the team weren't very fruitful, but India have paid their dues and are well on their way to becoming a bona fide title contender in the continent.

They will have their work cut out for them in the FIBA Asia Champions Cup 2016, though, especially with no foreign player reinforcing them and not having star forward Amjyot Singh around. India aren’t odds-on favorites to finish on the podium, but even if they don’t end up with any shiny hardware, expect coach Amit Kumar Singh’s wards to lay it all on the floor as the quality of Indian basketball continues to improve, undoubtedly putting the country on a fast-track to potential dominance.

FIBA.com got to talk about India's rise with Bhriguvanshi.

FIBA.com: You are coming off a great performance in the FIBA Asia Challenge 2016. How will that experience help you in this particular tournament?
Bhriguvanshi: The FIBA Asia Challenge was perfect, and it gave us motivation. We played pretty good and obviously that confidence will help us at the FIBA Asia Champions Cup too. We have three players from the current Indian squad, and we will try to put some good work over there.

FIBA.com: You guys have no imports playing in this tournament. How do you think will that impact the team's chances?
Bhriguvanshi: Yes, we do not have any foreign players and that will definitely affect us, but we can’t do anything about that. All we can actually do is just focus, play hard and try to get good results.

FIBA.com: With Amjyot Singh not playing in this competition, who do you expect will step up in his place?
Bhriguvanshi: When Amjyot plays for India then Yadwinder Singh plays as back up, but now without Amjyot, at ONGC, Yadwinder will play his role thoroughly.

FIBA.com: What is ONGC's main target or goal in this tournament, especially since the team has been one of the top Indian clubs for a long time now?
Bhriguvanshi: When we play for India, we have same goals for when we play for ONGC. So basically we aim to go there to perform well, play hard and try to upset some major teams.

FIBA.com: How do you feel about the current rise of Indian basketball?
Bhriguvanshi: Yes! I am lucky and glad to be a part of the current national squad because we have been putting in a lot of great work in past three years. We are rising gradually and hope to be a Top 3 Asian team in the next 10 years. I just hope that we continue with our hard work in the future as well and achieve great targets.

FIBA