National-Level Basketball Player Dies In Freak Accident, Pole Crushes 16-Year-Old During Practice

In a shocking incident, a 16-year-old national-level basketball player passed away in a tragic accident. While the youngster was practicing, an iron basketball pole fell on him. The impact of the pole falling on his chest ended up claiming his life. Hardik, the 16-year-old, was going through his drills on the court in Lakhan Majra in Rohtak, Haryana when the incident took place.

Tragic Incident Of Accident Caught On Camera

The spine-chilling CCTV footage of the incident shows Hardik practising alone in the court. The 16-year-old completes his run from the three-point line, the semi-circle with the pole in the middle, and later ends up touching the basket. The youngster was going through this traditional drill which is often performed to improve scoring capabilities.

After completing the first manoeuvre, he clutches the basket's rim and the pole unfortunately uproots and falls on him. The video also shows his friends rushing towards him. They removed the pole as soon as they could, but the damage had been done by then and the youngster passed away soon after.

According to the neighbours of the young player, he had returned from a training camp after being selected for the national team. Sandeep Rathi, Hardik's father, had enrolled him and his younger brother in a sports complex that was near to their home. A case has been registered and the police has recovered the body and handed it over to the family after the post-mortem.

ALSO READ | NBA: Nikola Jokic's Triple-Double and Peyton Watson's Career-high 32 Points Help Denver Nuggets Beat New Orleans Pelicans 125-118

Back-To-Back Unfortunate Incidents In Haryana

Hardik's tragic accident is not the first time that something so shocking has happened in Haryana. Prior to this, 15-year-old Aman passed away due to a similar kind of incident. There are several questions surrounding the public sports infrastructure after two back-to-back deaths of two promising basketball players.