Is all well in Pakistan hockey?

FILE PHOTO: All does not seem to be well with Pakistan hockey

Controversy is something that is synonymous with Pakistan hockey. Even as a pall of disappointment prevails over the team’s seventh place finish in the second men’s Hockey World League Round 3 event in Johor Bahru, there is growing talk that all is not well among the team management.

It is learnt that differences cropped up between national coach Hanif Khan and the Pakistan Hockey Federation’s (PHF) appointed coaching consultant Tahir Zaman during the recent Hockey World League event in Malaysia.

Top three teams – Argentina, Germany and England – qualified for the 2014 World Cup through the Hockey World League. Only one spot in the World Cup is now up for grabs, and that will go to the winners of the Asia Cup also being held in Malaysia from August 24.

According to sources close to the Pakistan Hockey Federation, Hanif Khan and Tahir Zaman, a former national team captain, who played in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and was also part of the 1994 World Cup-winning team in Sydney, are reported to be not on the same page while devising the team strategy.

In fact, the bad blood between the two affected Pakistan’s performance in the Johor Bahru event.

To compound the woes of the Pakistan Hockey Federation, several former hockey greats are calling for the removal of chief coach-cum-manager Akhtar Rasool and coach Hanif Khan as there is a general perception that the duo’s tactics are not in sync with the requirements of modern hockey.

Getting back to the Hanif Khan-Tahir Zaman face-off, it seems like the issue is more of their ego than anything else. Hanif Khan is believed to be miffed with Tahir Zaman and apparently feels that the latter is regularly interfering in his work.

Sources say that Hanif Khan is unhappy with the Pakistan Hockey Federation for sending Tahir Zaman to Malaysia as a coaching consultant. What disturbed Hanif more was the fact that the federation gave Tahir Zaman the authority to meddle in team matters and game plans for the matches.

Of course, it is not Tahir Zaman’s fault that he was playing an active role in devising game plans for the team as he was fulfilling his responsibilities as coaching consultant.

On his part, Tahir Zaman is believed to have told the PHF that Hanif was brushing aside game plans prepared by him before the matches at the ground, which apparently left players a confused lot.

Pakistan have not missed out on a World Cup ever, and the PHF has to act first on whether to stick to the same coaching staff or induct new coaching staff for the upcoming Asia Cup, which will be their final opportunity to grab a World Cup berth.