The Funatic Sports-initiated Double-Double (20-20) basketball turned out to be a huge success in its inaugural avatar at the Dawn 2 Dusk basketball tournament at Don Bosco, Matunga recently
This version of the game is played with five players on each side, but there can also be a situation where there are just four players against five. The first team to reach 20 points wins, or the team that is leading at the end of 12 minutes is declared the winner. In case of a tie, a free throw shootout is employed. One of the most interesting features of the format however, is the ejection of a player who has committed a third foul. And if the team has already utilised its threeu00a0
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substitutions, then they have to play with a man short — four players. If a team has less than three players on court, they must forfeit the game.
Commenting on the novel concept, Father Crispino D’Souza of Dominic Savio High School, said: “Twenty-20 basketball will not only make the sport more participative for players, but also more entertaining for the onlookers.”
Funatic Sports’ co-founder Farzan Damania said: “This format makes the game shorter and more entertaining. But more importantly, it also gives weaker teams the chance to beat stronger opposition if they can take an early lead and hang on to it.”u00a0