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 is better Sachin or Virat?

The hot Question since past three years is Who is a better player Sachin or Virat? Sachin Tendulkar Virat Kohli Well its not easy to compare two people of two different generations but it still can be done because of the fact that both of them have played with each other for good 3-4 years. Lets compare both of them on different aspects-: 1. Time periods : When we compare the periods when these two played then they are extremely different. Sachin made his debut at a time when India was emerging as a cricketing country, when we were not the best in any of the things. Sachin came as a hope as to we could say that we hav...

How has Indian badminton managed to reach great heights?

This phase of badminton is the best phase ever in Indian badminton.This blog is about what badminton has done right to reach this stage. Last two years have been exceptional for the Indian badminton players.From a hint of glory in men's singles to the dominance in women's singles,badminton has grown a lot as a sport.P.V Sindhu,K.Srikant are among the best known faces today in India.From Olympic silver to back to back superseries titles,hints of dominance of Indian badminton can be sensed.But when did the fate of Indian badminton change? Badminton has a great connection with India.It is believed that badminton started in this very country.In the 1980's the world saw a great badminton player Prakash Padukone.One of the very few known sportspersons at that time.The All England champion had set a tone for other coming badminton players at the time when sports(that too badminton) was hardly considered a profession to be taken.After that in 10 years there were a few good ...

Sports Smarter

Search This Blog