Gilli Dandaa traditional sport in Pakistan Abdul Wajid Khan Pakistan is a country with its diverse culture, serene

valleys, and extraordinary strategic geography. Like so many other factors, Pakistans traditional sports are unique in their nature. Among them is Gilli Danda. Gilli-Danda is an amateur sport played in the rural areas and small towns all over India and in Pakistan especially in Punjab, as well as Cambodia. It is called Tipcat in English, Dandi-Biyo in Nepali, alak-doulak in Persian, and dnggli in Bengali and Assamese. Gilli Danda" origins in Indian Sub-Continent date back to the "Maurya Dynasty" or even before that. This game is an extremely famous local game played all over the sub continent and even in South Asia. Gilli Danda is also believed to be the origin of many such European and American games like Cricket, Baseball & Softball. This is due to the uncanny similarities of this game to the current version of Cricket or Baseball.

Gilli, a small wooden piece cylindrical in shape with about one inch diameter and about 3-4 inches long is sharpened like a lead pencil from both sides. Danda, is a wooden rule or stick similar to that used by teachers in the school. The length of the rule is about 20 inches to 24 inches. Pillow, a small pit shaped like a "banana" is made in the ground. The length of this pit is about 4 inches. In this game a player balances the Gilli on a stone in an inclined manner (somewhat like a See-Saw) with one end of the Gilli rested or touching the ground while the other end is in the air. Player uses the second part of the equipment called "Danda" which in English is the stick- this is believed to have been evolved in to the Cricket or Baseball Bat. With the Danda, the player hits the Gilli at the end which is in the air- to flip it in the air and then strike the Gilli as far as possible. The player is made to stand in a small circle with the Danda and the Gilli. The objective is to strike the Gilli while in mid air as far as possible. The player is required to run and touch a particular section as decided until the Gilli is retrieved back. This

particular format is believed to have later evolved into Runs/ Home Runs. The Gilli becomes airborne after it is struck. If a fielder from the opposing team catches the Gilli, the striker is out. If the Gilli lands on the ground, the fielder closest to the Gilli has one chance to hit the Danda (which has to be placed on top of the hole used) with a throw (similar to a run out in cricket). If the fielder is successful, the striker is out; if not, the striker scores one score and gets another opportunity to strike. The team (or individual) with the most points wins the game. If the striker fails to hit Gilli in three tries, the striker is out (similar to a strikeout in baseball).While the Gilli has been struck the opponent player/players need to retrieve the Gilli back to the Circle or in best case catch the Gilli in mid air without it hitting the ground- this was believed to have later evolved into a Catch Out in Cricket and Baseball. There is no official maximum number of players or teams. GilliDanda can be played where each individual

plays for themselves, or between two teams. Writer is the editor of Weekly The World and pursuing his masters degree in mass communication at NUML.