Does Height Matter in Sports?

Height of an athlete is one of the key factors for players.Through this blog I would like to address this ever long question.

Usain Bolt,Dirk Nowiztki,Kobe Bryant are one of the most famous athletes.The common thing amoung them is that they are also one of the tallest players in the world.This brings us to a very famous question i.e Does height factor give advantage in sports?

My answer is Yes.It definitely gives a lot of advantage in sports like.In fact there is no sport in which height does give an advantage.

In cricket it helps the fast bowlers to get an extra bit bounce.
In basketball and volleyball it helps in reaching the fast at greater height
In racket sports like badminton and tennis it increases the reach on the court
In athletics it helps taking longer strides and hence increases speed

From the above argument it seems that the sports is very much biased towards the taller players.May be to some extent but not completely.For example in same above sports like in athletics taller athletes are slower to start than their counterparts.In short races like 100m,200, and 400m,this becomes an important factor.Also for longer race like 5000 m or above height hardly plays any role. Similarly in Volleyball good height is only useful for smashing and blocking.But the most important position of libero or the middle blocker demands shorter height.In badminton and tennis the taller players face problems in lifting the steep smashes and net vollies respectively.

It is also a common belief in sports that the taller players are more injury prone and have shorter carriers.Of course there are exceptions like Usain Bolt but generally speaking the above holds true.Back injuries are the most common injuries amoung the taller athletes.

Finally if I had to answer this question whether height matters in sports,then I would say yes but does height only matter in sports,then may be not.Talent is the main ingredient required,height can be an added advantage.There is no secret in the fact that the greatest cricketer the world has ever produced Sachin Tendulkar was just 165 cm tall but his achievements are unmatched.

Comments

Ashes 2017:The clash of the Titans

The most awaited test series of the year,Ashes is back with Australia and England battling one more time.This blog about the team analysis of both the teams and who stands a better chance this time. This year's Ashes series is a very different contest all together.Both the teams have a bunch of new players and debutants.This makes the series even more interesting.Talking about the visitors i.e England,the whole batting line up revolves aroung two players Alaister Cook and Joe Root.The whole team is a lot more dependant on these two players.The top order of England having the likes of Mark Stoneman,David Malan,James Vince is difficult to predict as these players don't have much experience.But the strength lies in the lower middle order of England where there is Moeen Ali,Jonny Bairstow.Both these players have a decent average of 35+.But it would be intersting to see how Moeen Ali plays in the fast and bouncy pitches of Australia.He got exposed to short balls when England ...

Who will win the U.S Open 2017?

U.S Open 2017 is all set to see its 137th champion.The withdrawl of many contenders have made this edition much more interesting.This blog discusses the major contenders of this championship this year. The biggest talking point in this year's U.S Open is who will play the finals rather than who will win the U.S Open.This is probably the first time that Nadal and Federer are placed in the same half of the draw in the absence of Djokovic and Murray.Defending champion Stanlas Wawrinka has also pulled out of the U.S Open due to injury.This means the top half is packed with many former U.S Open champions like Del Potro along with Federer and Nadal.Hence the one who advances from the top half is expected to win the championship.Bottom half has some good players like Cilic,Sam Querry,Zverev,Tsonga but Tsonga and Zverev have already been knocked out of tournament.The bottom half is expected to have such upsets because none of these players have been consistent in grand slam events...

ATP World Tour Finals 2017:As it happened

The most dramatic tournament of the year ended up with debutant Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria winning this tournament for the very first time.This blog is the analysis of this tournament. Nobody in this world would have predicted Dimitrov to win the ATP World tour finals this year.But he suprised everyone by defeating David Goffin of Belgium to clinch this title at his very first attempt.I really do not think this have ever happened in the past.The tournament was a roller coaster ride.First of all Nadal had to pull out from this tournament in the league stage itself which gave Pablo Custa a surprise entry to the championship. It was also the first time semi finals was contested with three debutants.Above all Dimitrov winning the championship.Roger Federer who was expected to win the championship in the semi finals after losing to David Goffin inthe semifinals.The way Goffin played against Federer it was predicted that he would eventually win the tournament.But in the finals Dimit...

Sports Smarter

Search This Blog