Sri Lanka looking to end nine year long wait
BEIRUT (FIBA Asia Cup 2021 Pre-Qualifiers - Western Region) – The last time Sri Lanka competed at the pan-Asia level was in 2009.
BEIRUT (FIBA Asia Cup 2021 Pre-Qualifiers - Western Region) – For almost an entire generation of Sri Lankan basketball players, the Western Region Pre-Qualifiers is a step closer towards their first appearance in the Asian continental championship.
The last time Sri Lanka competed at the Asian level was in 2009.
Back then, the FIBA Asia Cup was called the FIBA Asia Championship and Sri Lanka benefited from a much easier qualification route. With most Central and South Asian teams backing out, Sri Lanka, along with India, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan gained automatic entries into the 2009 FIBA Asia Championship.
The 2009 FIBA Asia Championship was held in Tianjin, China from 6 to 16 August.
Sri Lanka was grouped with Korea, Japan and Philippines. It was the island nation’s seventh appearance in Asia’s premier continental championship.
The tough draw meant that the Lankans ended winless, suffering three heavy defeats. The 13th-16th Classification games were no different, with Sri Lanka losing by big margins to Uzbekistan and Indonesia, to finish last.
This time around, Sri Lanka will be bolstered by a young and confident side, fresh from victory at the SABA Pre-Qualifiers.
36-year-old point guard Roshan Randima is the only holdover from 2009 in the current roster.
While it is unlikely that Sri Lanka can upset taller and physical sides like Palestine, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia or Bahrain, the exposure itself will do wonders.
Out of the five teams in action at these Western Region Pre-Qualifiers, Sri Lanka only needs to finish among the top four. So realistically speaking, all that the Lankans need to do is beat SABA rivals Bangladesh, in order to progress to the FIBA Asia Cup 2021 Qualifiers.
For a side that has remained winless outside the SABA sub-zone, a single victory is all it will take to rewrite history.
FIBA