FIBA Women’s World Cup: Elonu ready to lead D’Tigress to success
By
Adaora Elonu is no visitor to the unpredicted from a basketball game and as such says she has herself prepared for what the big teams in Nigeria’s Group B opponents will bring to the World Cup.
The 28-year-old forward re-joined the team after her spell with the Atlanta Dream in the WNBA she believes basketball all over the world is the same but admits the difference is in what a team brings.
She told FIBA.basketball that despite being out of the team’s preparations for a few weeks, she is confident that her team has the right synergy to carry her through the first round matches.
According to Elonu “No pressure on me, everything is team effort. We all trust each other so there is no pressure. It’s going to be a good experience for us.”
“I have missed a lot, especially being with the girls. I have missed being around, I have missed work also. So much work has been done on the team which I have skipped but I am sure to catch up with the work and progress very quickly.”
Elonu who had won the NCAA title with the A&M University back in 2011 while addressing the pressures her position as team captain brings to her noted that she does not allow anything weigh her down.
Elonu further said, “Till now, nothing has weighed me down and I just hope it would continue that way. The girls trust me and I have the same trust in them. And as long as they choose to go the same way, and we are on the same track, I would absorb any type of pressure in Spain and give my best.”
“I can boldly say my teammates and I are under no iota of pressure. We cannot dispute the fact that rankings matter but it is the game of basketball we are all going out there to play.”
“We are looking forward to compete with them and doing well since we have been drawn in the same group already. We have played against Turkey before and we did put up a good fight, but we have not faced Argentina or Australia before.”
On her expectations, she stressed that “I expect us to go out there as always and compete, we have the fighting spirit, and we are well prepared, what else can we then expect but to do well?
“If you see yourself going beyond a particular stage and believe in it, you would see yourself getting there, and I think that is what everyone in the team sees. We see ourselves advancing far in the World Cup and as a result, we are tenaciously working towards that,” she explained.
Elonu admits so much would be expected of Nigeria as reigning African Champions but says that she believes the team has great potentials.
“I think we need to work harder and keep on being who we are. We have a story of excellence in Africa; we want this story to keep repeating till it sticks. We have put on a good shot and we are here, we want to put in more effort and with the support of not only Nigeria but Africa at large, we are sure to do well,” the Houston native pointed out.
Jonathan Aderoju