2011: A wasted year where opportunities lost are galore

Indian hockey is an undisputed master at the art of turning every golden & godsend opportunity into a tragedy. The year just gone by was no different.

A country that still prides itself as a hockey nation, had done nothing yet again to be so.

Instead, it frittered away all the goodwill and most commercial opportunities that came in its way in 2011.

With a result, no single international activity for seniors took place on the Indian soils. This barren scenario was stark contrast to last year which witnessed World Cup and Commonwealth Games, keeping hockey fans on a thrill.

How can a sport prosper without tournaments hosted on its home?

Hosting tournament costs money, and our hockey administrators revel only on government doles and are therefore ready to send team abroad than to organize something here. This is motored by the fact that government shell out huge sum hoping to revive Indian hockey. Collectively, government of India has spent about Rs 10 crore on hockey alone.

So, we have some tournaments held outside in which India figured.

It covers a Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, another Asian event in Ordos and then a long Australian tour before playing in a worthy FIH event – Champions Challenge I.

Logically, the first three were supposed to be in preparation for the last one, so that India can enter the ‘Lost Paradise’ Champions Trophy on merit.

But our men fell short.

India did well to enter the Champions Challenge Final, but it was not good enough to be the winner.

India could not defeat Belgium in the opener – it was a 3-3 draw – and then went down 3-4 in the last hurdle to the same rival.

This year is remarkable in the sense that our men’s national team had been beset with second half problem.

Suffice to say, Indians played their internationals as if first half is there to score and the next half is to concede!

It seems Indian hockey is again groping in dark despite acquiring ‘miracle’ menfolk from Australia – from coaching to administration.

Michael Nobbs, who was fortunate to get a full 5-year tenure thanks to the vision of Pargat Singh, reasoned Indian debacles to the process of ‘unlearning’ the past and the players lacking in fitness. He assured us if the World Series Hockey is not held, these things can be fixed by the time the Olympic Qualifier is held in February this year.

We have every reason to believe him to deliver, as he has been in the seat only midway through the year.

His beginning did not inspire any of us, nor the majority players, but a judgment will be in order only later this year. This despite being Ordos win, which had mere academic interest.

On the domestic side, Indian hockey was not run by some X or Y organization whatever each faction would like us to believe.

There is every logic to believe that India is divided to rule; it works in favour of the vested international interests. Its shame on India and it is how the world looked at India.

India has thus lost its image world over. Our game suffers because of this perception.

A first-time Tournament Director, for instance, had the temerity to suspend five Indian players It can happen only when your national body counts zero. That this incident and its consequence happened when our team was touring the Chief Coach’s home state and the teams’ affair was managed none other than by the national body’s Chief Executive Officer herself, speak volume about how decaying are things for India on the international circuit.

Indian hockey is never subject to strict scrutiny. Not many raise uncomfortable questions. Most think, perhaps, why to flog a dead horse!

Its again first time in the history of our hockey a tournament allotted to India was taken away without any protest from the national body.

On the face of it, it appeared the FIH and Hockey India spiked the World Series Hockey, but it was actually done in by the divided players. They dug in their own prospects.

The commercial success of Hockey 9s, Ten Sports Channel’s TV contract with FIH, speak volume about the opportunities that had been missed out by India. Depite toeing every line of FIH, HI failed to retain Champions Trophy and with that good opportunity for Indian players to rub shoulders with the world’s best.

The field of Champions Trophy was enlarged from six to eight to get India and Pakistan in. In the end, it turned out that the latter gained, while the former lost out. India gifted Pakistan Asian Games gold last year, losing to Malaysia in the semis. This year’s gift was Champion Trophy. Long live their friendship, at least.

This is in a nutshell is the story of India in 2011.