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The build up to the biggest hockey event ever staged on Indian soil could not have gone any worse! I am not complaining about the lack of news items leading to the tournament but the focus of it.
The ideal build up should have focused on the Event, Stadium, history of Indian hockey, history of the tournament, the Host city and the teams participating in the World cup. The Indian National hockey team should have maintained a low profile to keep in check unwanted controversies and unrealistic expectations and enter the tournament in the best possible mind frame.
Instead, we have been hearing of news related to Payment issues, Captaincy, Bar on Media, State of the Stadium, Ticketing, Security, Charity Fiasco and the list goes on….. Lack of experience in conducting a major tournament is very evident. There has been a total lack of co-ordination between the various stakeholders Viz: FIH, Hockey India, National Team, and Sports Ministry, Organizing committee, SAI and the media.
Having followed hockey very closely for a good part of the last decade, I have come to expect this from the Hockey officials, SAI and ministry. But it is hugely disappointing to see the part played by the players.
I am not blaming them for the Standoff in the Pune Camp over the payment issue. I thought that was a necessity and I am glad it happened. But it is the events after that incident that baffles me. Having got what they wanted the players should have focused on the tournament with single minded focus.
Captaincy
The captaincy issue was a needless controversy. The hockey players would know better than anybody that the role of a captain in Hockey is limited. And Rajpal is not a terrible choice considering he is a very calm and balanced person besides being a very consistent player. The player’s and coach’s choice Prabjoth Singh, a match-winner on his day, can be erratic (remember Champions trophy 2005) and has been culprit on many occasion in his career of ten years for missing sitters. His biggest folly is his temperamental nature. India has so often been penalized for unnecessary argument with the umpire at crucial junctures of the match.
The players were just not think hockey. I am sure Prabjoth scored a lot of points for his ability to take on the officials. The players should have known that, at the world cup they are going to be up against the very best Hockey players in the world and not the officials.
Charity Fiasco
There can be no bigger promotion for the National sport than winning a medal in a meaningful tournament. Meaningful tournaments, I mean the Olympics, World Cup and the Champions Trophy. And what better opportunity than doing it at home when there will be maximum attention from the fans and the corporate.
One can’t promote the sport by playing an exhibition match with bollywood and TV stars. It only serves the purpose of filling a few pockets. I can’t understand how the players agreed to play such a match a week ahead of the India-Pakistan opener even in the name of promotion.
This kind of behavior from the players only goes on to show that the Players want to capitalize on the buzz around the World Cup and make the maximum out of it pre-tournament. They can’t wait for the tournament to end for obvious reasons.
Someone please tell the players, a good performance in the tournament is the one and only panacea for all the issues in Indian Hockey.
Come on boys; please don’t think of short term gains. If you really want to do it for Indian Hockey, do it now. We, the last few hundred hockey fans in India are banking on you to save the game.
Our expectations are not a medal or a top four finish. All we are asking for is for you to show some fight in the tournament, the way you fought with the administrators. The result, if any is a bonus for us.
