India Crush Nepal 110-32 in Opening Game of the 3rd SABA Women's Championship

Participating for the first time in the SABA Women's Championship, the hosts were led by an outstanding performance from captain Sreekala Rani.

New Delhi, 23 February 2025: The 3rd South Asian Basketball Association (SABA) Women’s Championship got underway at the KD Jadhav Indoor Stadium in New Delhi.

Hosts India proved why they are the tournament favourites after they delivered a commanding performance, crushing Nepal with a staggering 110-32 victory.

From the onset, the home side showcased their clear height supremacy over their opponents by ending the first quarter with a 17-point lead.

India, participating for the first time in the SABA Women's Championship, was led by an outstanding performance from captain Sreekala Rani. She raked up an impressive 27 points, six assists, and four steals, spearheading India’s relentless offensive attack.

India further asserted their dominance racing to a 42-10 lead by halftime with Sathya adding 15 points and teammate Harshitha coming in with seven rebounds.

Nepal Falls Short

Despite the odds stacked against them, Nepal’s captain, Anusha Malla, put in a note-worthy performance, scoring 21 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Her individual heroism was one of the few bright spots for Nepal, as they struggled against India physically.

Nepal came into the third quarter showing some signs of a fight, pushing harder for offensive rebounds. They also made the best of India’s fouls and earned points from the free-throw line. However, these efforts failed to make the hosts break a sweat, and at no point in the game did India look like they were worried.

The Road Ahead

Following today’s emphatic win, India will next play against Maldives on 25 February 2025. But before that, Nepal will play Maldives on 24 February 2025. The final two teams will compete for the golden spot on 26 February 2025.

India (Rani Sreekala 27 pts & 6 ast, Sathya Krishnamurthi 15 pts & 8 ast & 4 stl, Krithika Sureshbabu 14 pts & 7 reb) bt Nepal (Anusha Malla 21 pts & 9 rebs, Garisha Silwal 5 pts & 3 reb, Rinchen Moktan 4 pts & 8 reb & 1 ast) 110-32 [23-6, 19-4, 36-9, 32-13]

India’s Games’ Schedule (IST)

25 February 2025 vs Maldives at 6:00 PM

26 February 2025 – Finals at 6:00 PM (If Qualified)

Where to Watch?

The games are being live-streamed on the BFI YouTube channel.

***

If you've come this far...

Appeal to readers - ₹₹ Support Ekalavyas: Ekalavyas is India's first and only basketball media company. We are not foreign-funded, nor investor backed. Your support and encouragement have got us this far. We now need your financial assistance to ensure we can keep providing you timely, accurate and important information. Please contribute via https://razorpay.me/@ekalavyas​ 🙏🏾. We are accepting contributions as low as Rs. 1/- (including a small processing fee charged by the payment gateway provider). Thank you for playing a part in keeping media independent and objective!