Franchise leagues will give youngsters much-needed exposure: Indian women's assistant coach Radhika

New Delhi, July 9 (PTI) Franchise-based leagues can transform Indian volleyball by giving youngsters the match exposure they desperately need and creating a stronger pathway to the national team, believes Indian women's assistant coach Radhika Paruchuri. According to Paruchuri, leagues can help bridge the gap created by the lack of international exposure and strengthen India's talent pipeline. "Franchise-based volleyball leagues will be very helpful for future generations, allowing them to play as many matches as possible and increase their exposure," Radhika, an FIVB Level III coach, told PTI on the sidelines of the launch of the Volleyball Champions League. "The league will provide budding players a platform to showcase their talent, compete alongside foreign players, learn from them and improve their game." Paruchuri, who recently guided India's U-18 women's team as head coach at the AVC Girls' U-18 Volleyball Championship in Thailand, said franchise leagues are vital for identifying and nurturing young talent. "These leagues provide a big platform for youngsters to perform. Only then will we be able to identify talent. The league will raise the standard of Indian volleyball at both the national and international levels. Indian players will also get the opportunity to play alongside top foreign players." Paruchuri, however, lamented the decline of Indian women's volleyball, attributing it to inadequate international exposure and the absence of a strong domestic competition structure. "When I represented the Indian women's volleyball team, our ranking was consistently among the top 10 in Asia. Today, it has dropped significantly. The main reasons are the lack of international exposure and the absence of a domestic structure that enables women players to improve their game and progress to higher levels," she said. Having coached successful domestic sides such as Kerala, Southern Railways and Indian Railways, Paruchuri believes both the men's and women's national teams have the potential to make significant progress. "Over the last decade, there have been several issues. Proper volleyball tournaments were not conducted, and young players missed out on crucial match experience. Now, they have an opportunity to gain that exposure through leagues like this," she observed. The inaugural Volleyball Champions League, scheduled for October this year, will feature 10 city-based franchises competing against one another. Several Arjuna and Dronacharya Awardees have also been roped in to support the league. PTI SR APA APA