Throwball is a team sport that originated in the Indian subcontinent, which shares a lot of similarities to volleyball and newcomb ball. The sport is predominantly played by women.
Throwball is played between two teams with seven players on each side. The court used is similar to a volleyball court but is slightly larger, measuring 40.03 × 60.04ft, with the neutral box marked 1.5m from the middle. The net is 2.2m high. The ball used is similar to that of volleyball.
The objective of the sport is to catch the ball without allowing it to bounce on the ground and throw it back onto the opponent's side of the court.
A throwball match is played in best of three sets format in which the team that wins two sets first wins the match. Each set is played for 15 points.
A play starts with a serve. Serves have to fall beyond the neutral zone of the opponent's side of the court. The play continues with back and forth catch and throwback till one team is unable to catch the ball, or is unable to throw the ball back inbounds.
Throwball is a popular sport in India where a National Throwball Championship is conducted every year.
Similar Sports
There are a couple of other sports that are very similar to Throwball, basically volleyball but the players catch and throw the ball: Catchball and Newcomb Ball.
- Newcomb Ball — an early variation of volleyball, where teams throw a ball back and forth until it hits the floor or is mishandled.
- Catchball — an easier version of volleyball in which players catch and throw the ball rather than hit it.
- Hoover Ball — a version of volleyball invented for US President Herbert Hoover, in which a medicine ball is thrown over the net and caught before being thrown back (unusual sport).
- Volleyball — a game for two teams of six players, in which a large ball is hit by hand over a high net, the aim being to score points by making the ball reach the ground on the opponent's side of the court.
Related Pages
- About Sport in India
- Complete list of sports
- The Encyclopedia of Sports