Basketball: Meet Ulhas, who has gone from TN’s Kancheepuram to Serbian league, in hopes of realising his NBA dream

Having reached Novi Pazar in early October, Ulhas is now integrating into the squad and has already warmed up to their new import. “Thanks to the relationship between both countries, my integration has been really smooth. We have the Serbian Cup coming up, which is what we are preparing for. Personally, for me it is a big moment because if I can replicate my performances here, then it will put me closer to NBA,” Ulhas says.

With the Serbian league being physically demanding Ulhas has been working on improving his fitness levels, especially for the duels. And Serbian players in the recent Paris Olympics came close to beating USA in the semi-finals before losing by mere 4 points ending up as bronze medallists. “Here it is lot tougher than what you are used to in Europe. It is physically very challenging and it is not just because they are tall. They are very strong with the defence and use their shoulders and elbows to create space and win duels. It is sort of fine with me as well, because I’m used to giving back now. It is why I’ve become stronger physically.”

It is a totally different landscape for Ulhas at Serbia, who haven’t been conservative in terms of going for a talent who has grown up in a country not known for its basketball culture. From the time Ulhas walked onto a basketball court as a seven-year-old in a New Delhi school, overcoming stereotypes has been a constant theme. From New Delhi to Europe – London, Chisinau (Maldova) and Valletta (Malta) – he has been greeted with surprised looks.

Ulhas stands at 6-foot-1 inch. His wingspan is around ‘6’4-6’5 approximately’ and shoe size, 10. “Ivan ena inga panran? (What is he even doing here?) is how I get greeted. With my height, I could get away in India, but from the moment I landed in University of Westminster in London, there is always this quizzical expression from by teammates that I’ve got used to by now. It is the same old stereotype… What is an Indian doing on a basketball court and do brown players even play the sport?” says Ulhas.

While it is common for hoopsters from India to go to the US in pursuit of the sport, Ulhas had his reasons to pick Europe. (Special Arrangement)

The 26-year-old who has his roots in Tamil Nadu’s Kancheepuram, but has grown up in New Delhi is the first Indian professional to be playing in European Leagues. Having done his schooling in the NCR, Ulhas took a gigantic step to move to the UK to pursue life as a professional. “I just took a chance because I didn’t want to regret it later. By then I knew I had the talent and wanted to explore more,” he says.

Westminster would be his first stop and window to Europe. At the University, he would give trials and successfully make it to the first team and captain it a year later. “It was the first time, I actually got to play systematic basketball with a lot of plays (pre-decided team patterns) and understanding of the game. It was totally different to what I’d played in India. In India, we never ran plays or ran anything. It was more of whoever can score can score, whoever is open will score. But that wasn’t the case in London. There was a system, plays and all of it because they had good defence. Suddenly you are not playing 1×1. It becomes a truly team sport. And since I was a point guard, I had to learn 20 plays. It was a different IQ level of playing basketball with players from Europe and US,” Ulhas says.

While it is common for basketball players from India to aspire to playing in the US, Ulhas had his reasons to pick Europe. “If I’d gone to the US directly, I would have been lost. My confidence would have taken a beating and I’d be demoralised. Had I taken that route, I wouldn’t be playing basketball now,” he adds.

The three years at Westminster would do a world of good for Ulhas. A point guard, he would become a combo guard (one who shoots as well as defends). Rubbing shoulders with players from Greece, Eastern Europe and ones from US meant, he would get to learn the physical side of the sport and more importantly find ways to stand tall over the rest.

“In any market anybody who is 6’7, 6’8 would be preferred over 6’1. With me, I had to be a great shooter and a great defender. If I failed in even one, then I wouldn’t get an opportunity to be on the court. It is a constant battle. Nobody can be perfect 24×7, but when you are from an Indian background, all of this matters,” Ulhas says.

From trash talk to not being welcomed and through body language, Ulhas had experienced it all. “It is in a way subtle racism, but you just move along. In UK it was direct. It starts from your teammates and it is generally not from the opponents. They accept a Black player quickly, but when it comes to Brown, there is still a long way to go,” he says.

The opportunity to play in Moldova in 2021 would make Ulhas the first Indian to play in a European League. Having not chosen to seek employment opportunities back home in India via sports quotas, it was a vindication for the bold step he took to move to Westminster.

“When I got the opportunity, I was in this space that I wanted to show it is possible for Indians to play the sport and be good at it as well. In the first game I got 28 points and that set the tone. I’d to maintain that level and that pressure pushed me a lot. People have looked down on me for my height, my colour, and also because I was an Indian… that for me didn’t feel right because there are good talents here as well.”