CHENNAI: It's common for one to have heard that he or a she belongs to a family of sportspersons.
However, to come across a family which makes a mark in one particular sport is a rarity. The sports loving city of Chennai has over the years produced a few families who have made the country or state proud in one discipline or the other. To begin with, there were the Krishnans and Amritrajs in tennis, and brothers trio of Peter, Philip and Thomas (hockey), and the five siblings (Prabhakaran, Rajasekaran, Baskaran, Vaseekaran and Jayasekaran) of Olympian Baskaran’s family in hockey. India have not been able to make an impact in basketball at the international arena. Lack of infrastructure, financial backing, international exposure and monetary returns may be some of the reasons for India not becoming a major force in the sport. Despite these odds there is one family who have taken up to this sport in right earnest.
Basketball runs in the blood of Muralinath siblings. Have an exclusive tournament for families and this one will have a bright chance of podium finish. K Muralinath is a renowned figure in basketball circle, both as a player and as a coach. He is the eldest of three brothers and has played in 13 nationals, representing Tamil Nadu thrice and the Indian Railways 10 times. Murali represented the country at the 1982 Asian Games in New Delhi and was in the team for the Goodwill tour to Moscow and also played in an international event in Seoul. He has been the coach of Indian Railways for many years and is proud to say that many of his wards have been recruited in sports quota in various institutions.
His passion for the game could be gauged by the fact that he makes it a point to report to the J J Stadium almost every day.
Shyla Muralinath, his wife has played for Kerala in 1980, and the Indian Railways team in 1981 and 82. Both his daughters, M Priyanka, the eldest and M Apoorva have played for Tamil Nadu. Apoorva has been a junior India probable in 2008. She is a student of MOP Vaishnav College. With the daughters into the game one cannot expect the son to be far behind. M Vignesh is a student of SRM University and has represented the South Zone team. He now plays for Gopalapuram Basketball club. “My brothers K Gopinath and K Prem are all above 6 ft 4 inches. And that’s one reason, basketball was to our liking,” said Murali.
Gopinath played a Test match against Russia, represented the junior India team for three years and played for his employers Indian Overseas Bank till 1988. K Prem, the youngest of the brothers, played for State Bank of India. He was a permanent member of the state team for five consecutive years and has also played for the country.
His wife Padmaja and daughter are also basketball players.
“My father Vijaya Raghavala had been a heavyweight boxer attached to the police. He was a disciplinarian and emphasised on physical fitness. In one way it was his insistence that laid the foundation for us to become sportsmen.
During our playing days, we represented different teams. At least two of us will be playing against each other in the semis or in the final. We were tough customers on the court and at times fought at home too,” said Murali.
Murali is eager to do something worthwhile for the game he loves. At present, he is the in charge of the Tamil Nadu state team and hopes the team will do well in the upcoming nationals.