Rinku Singh is India's biggest association with Baseball. Rinku Singh is India's biggest association with Baseball.

Rinku Singh is India's biggest association with Baseball, after the small town boy won a reality show and became the first Indian professional baseball player with a contract with US side Pittsburg Pirates five years ago.



Apart from this 'slumdog millionaire' story, there is not much to tell about Indian baseball. This despite the fact that the Indian Baseball federation has existed since the 1980's and has often received funding and help from countries like the USA and Japan.



But now two college kids are aiming to change that, vying to bridge the gap between Cricket and Baseball, often considered step-brothers.



Indian Raunaq Sahni and his American friend Jackson Golden have launched Grand Slam Baseball - an umbrella initiative aiming to bring the various Indian fringe baseball teams, associations and enthusiasts under one umbrella and grow the sport at the grass root level.



Talking about how the initiative began, Jackson Golden says, 'I lived in Delhi for 16 years and played baseball here with friends and at the American Embassy. But hardly anyone here knew about the sport or had facilities to play. So I came back from college in the US to start this initiative.'



Golden studies with the Northeastern University in Boston and designed a specific program that allowed him to come to India and start this company.



His childhood friend Raunaq Singh feels Indians, growing up on cricket, are an automatic talent pool for Baseball.



'The dynamics between cricket and Baseball are so similar, I feel Indians can be great at this sport too,' a sentiment echoed by Golden too.



A small initiative now, Grand Slam Baseball aims to promote the sport at schools and colleges, arrange ground facilities for training and camps and provide infrastructure for an adult league to begin with.



Added to the initiative is the might of the expat communities in the capital.



Won Ho Synn, Captain of the Indiana Baseball Team, a Korean Expat team, is confident this initiative can build the awareness the sport needs.



'Over the past four years, we have faced a lot of difficulty playing baseball in India as hardly anyone knows about it. When we approached the Federations, even they couldn't help us much initially. But now I think Indians will know a lot more about baseball shortly. This (initiative) will help with that.'



Not many might know that the Delhi has a robust baseball federation and age teams that have been winning many medals at the National level. But they still lack proper coaching and equipment. Now the Delhi baseball federation too is keen to collaborate with Grand Slam Baseball.



And the 300-odd young kids, from very poor backgrounds, representing Delhi teams are hoping Baseball can finally make its mark in this cricket crazy country.



Grand Slam baseball has already created a buzz with companies like Nike offering to donate free equipment. Several MLB-level coaches too have shown interest in coming to India to hold camps.



Golden adds, 'I think the collaboration between the Indian, American, Korean, Japanese communities is exactly what helps. Then foreign coaches also become interested in coming here. We can arrange equipment from America.'



So, hopefully soon, a bat and a ball, runs and innings, batters and fielders, will not be the only common thread between Cricket and Baseball.