Sports Terms, Trophies & National Awards

🎯 Learning Objective

Recall players per team, sport-specific terms and trophies, and India's top civilian, gallantry and sports awards.

💡 Concept

• Players per team: Cricket 11, Football 11, Hockey 11, Kabaddi 7, Volleyball 6, Basketball 5, Polo 4
• Cricket terms: LBW, googly, bouncer, maiden over, no-ball, cover drive; Football terms: penalty, corner, offside, dribble
• Cricket trophies (India): Ranji Trophy, Duleep Trophy, Irani Trophy, Vijay Hazare Trophy
• Badminton team cups: Thomas Cup (men), Uber Cup (women); Tennis has the Davis Cup
• Football's Durand Cup is the oldest football tournament in India and Asia; Dhyan Chand was the hockey wizard and National Sports Day is 29 August (his birthday)
• The Bharat Ratna is India's highest civilian award (instituted 1954); its first three recipients (1954) were C. Rajagopalachari, Dr. S. Radhakrishnan and C. V. Raman
• Sachin Tendulkar was the first sportsperson and the youngest person to receive the Bharat Ratna (2014)
• The Padma Awards, in order, are Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri; all civilian awards are announced on Republic Day
• The Param Vir Chakra is the highest wartime gallantry award and the Ashoka Chakra the highest peacetime gallantry award; Major Somnath Sharma was the first Param Vir Chakra recipient
• The Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna is the highest sports award (renamed in 2021); the Arjuna Award is for players and the Dronacharya Award for coaches

🧮 Key Formulas

Kabaddi 7 | Volleyball 6 | Basketball 5 | Polo 4 players

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Bharat Ratna instituted 1954 | National Sports Day 29 August (Dhyan Chand)

✏️ Easy Example

Q. How many players are there in a Kabaddi team on the field? (a) 5 (b) 6 (c) 7 (d) 11

1. Cricket, football and hockey each have 11
2. A Kabaddi team has 7 players on the field

Answer: (c) 7

🇮🇳 Real-Life Example

When Sachin Tendulkar retired in 2013, the very next year he became the first sportsperson ever to receive the Bharat Ratna — proof that the country's highest civilian honour can reach a cricket field, not just politics and science.

📝 Exam-Level Example

Q. The Param Vir Chakra is awarded for gallantry during which time?

1. It is India's highest military decoration
2. It is awarded for bravery in war (wartime)

Answer: Wartime (in the face of the enemy)

📝 Exam-Level Example

Q. The Dronacharya Award is given to whom in the field of sports?

1. It is named after the guru Dronacharya from the Mahabharata
2. It is awarded to outstanding sports coaches

Answer: Coaches

🪄 Memory Trick

Team sizes drop: Cricket/Football/Hockey 11, Kabaddi 7, Volleyball 6, Basketball 5, Polo 4. Awards order: Bharat Ratna > Padma Vibhushan > Padma Bhushan > Padma Shri.

⚠️ Common Mistakes

• ❌ Mixing up the Padma order — it is Vibhushan, then Bhushan, then Shri
• ❌ Confusing the Param Vir Chakra (wartime) with the Ashoka Chakra (peacetime)
• ❌ Thinking the Arjuna Award goes to coaches — that is the Dronacharya Award; Arjuna is for players

🏆 Exam Tips

• ✅ Dhyan Chand connects two facts: hockey wizard AND National Sports Day (29 August)
• ✅ The Khel Ratna was renamed the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award in 2021

📌 Summary

• Players: Cricket/Football/Hockey 11, Kabaddi 7, Volleyball 6, Basketball 5, Polo 4
• Bharat Ratna (1954, highest civilian); first sportsperson Sachin Tendulkar (2014)
• Padma order: Vibhushan > Bhushan > Shri; Param Vir Chakra (war), Ashoka Chakra (peace)
• Khel Ratna (highest sports), Arjuna (players), Dronacharya (coaches)