5 sports that will make you want to go back to childhood

“If you carry your childhood with you, you never become older.” -Tom StoppardThere was a time when we were young. A time when there were no worries, no responsibilities, no headaches due to stress and no regrets. A time when the greatest tension was created when someone got a better pencil in class than you did. Or the time when we were ever so impatient, waiting for the final bell to mark the end of school for the day. That was the glorious past. The past which was full of enjoyment, mostly of sports and a little of academics. The little games we used to play, and how they still continue to teach us.So here are some of the childhood games that will take you down memory lane:

#5 Stapoo/Hopscotch

A game that very subtly taught us the basic rules of addition and subtraction without us even realizing that. Stapoo, the game which could be played in a room or a yard etched into our minds the despair that a few inches here or there could cause. In the game, as in life, the little inches are the ones that matter.

Hopscoth was a true test of leg strength and throwing ability. If the stone landed outside the box, your chance would have gotten over. We all remember this little game with fond memories.

#4 Kho-Kho

A mention of Kho-Kho would take you back to those PT classes in school when all the girls and boys in class had a common favorite game which was Kho-Kho. This popular tag game gave us an adrenaline rush while we waited for someone to tag us on our back and say ‘Kho’ so that we could chase a member of the other team; and some use of sheer smartness could sometimes take down the fastest person in the game.

#3 Lagori/Seven Stones/Pitthu/Satodiyu

There was a time when those seven stones defined your existence. This was the game when one team hit the pile of stones and the other use to chase them and hit them with a tennis ball so that they could not ‘rebuild’ their pile.

This exciting game is known by different names across various regions. Some call it Lagori, others call it Pitthu, in Gujarat it is called ‘Satodiyu’ and some may simply call it ‘seven stones’. These were the seven stones on which friendships were built.

#2 Pakdam Pakdai

A game that made us run like crazy, no matter how slim or fat we were. A real test of fitness, Pakdam Pakdai was a favorite amongst one and all. One person was the ‘denner’ who would chase the others until he caught hold of all of them, after which the dreaded title was passed on to the first person who was caught.

And the game would continue with the new ‘denner’. Oh, the stuff we all did to avoid being the ‘denner’.

#1 Gully Cricket

Cricket is a game that resides in the heart and soul of every Indian. No Indian would ever be oblivious of the fact that Sachin Tendulkar defines cricket for India. So, here is a different version of the game that the Master Blaster played. Most of us played in our childhood, probably even Sachin did.

We loved breaking those window panes and tried sending that ball to lofty heights and then would dread the appearance of the grumpy old Sharma uncle who lived in the neighborhood apartment. And then began the blame game of who hit the ball.