Seven feet tall, Punjab sub-inspector makes striking impression as hoopster

Gurbaxpuri

Tarn Taran, May 1

Standing seven feet tall, Amritpal Singh, a sub-inspector in the Punjab Police, makes a striking first impression. Born in 1991 at Fattuwal village near Rayya, he has gained a rare reputation for his good conduct and sporting achievements.

It all started at the age of 17 when he took basketball seriously while studying at Maharaja Ranjit Singh Police Public School, Phillaur. Credit goes to his height. Of course, there are some quirks of the game as well. “I often get requests for selfies when I am in public, but that’s because of my height,” he shared lightly.

Amritpal scaled several professional sporting highs, including leading the country’s national basketball team as the captain for 14 years. His sports career paid him dividends too and earned him a job as a sub-inspector under the sports quota. At present, he has been posted with the Tarn Taran police.

Recalling his beginnings, when he took up basketball—an unconventional sport in Punjab’s context—Amritpal said, “I was in eleventh standard when I first joined Ludhiana Basketball Academy and side by side carried on with my studies. Initially, it was difficult as there were very few competent coaches and one had to train extensively. But when I made it to the national team for the first time, the achievement and a sense of surrealism never left.” Over the years, he has won over 20 gold, silver, and bronze medals as a member of the team. In 2011, he was made the captain for the Asia Cup team and carried the crown of captaincy till 2025. Since 2011, he has played four times each in the Asia Cup and Asian Championship competitions. He also played once each in the Commonwealth Games and in the Australian league in 2017.

Helping him hone his skills with the ball and up his game, his colleagues and superiors in the police force have backed him and supported his game. “It’s not just a platform to further boost my career in the police force, but also develop and promote the game. Basketball is a huge sport worldwide and Indians too follow it. But we hardly see any support for the Indian basketball team as we see in the West. We need to bring in money and young athletes to develop the game,” he said.

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Punjab