Pak players doubtful for Hockey India League

MS Unnikrishnan/tns

New Delhi, January 10
The participation of the Pakistan players in the Hockey India League (HIL), starting at the National Stadium in Delhi on January 14 with a match between Delhi Waveriders and Jaypee Punjab Warriors, looks doubtful following the brutal killing of two Indian soldiers in an ambush in Kashmir.

In all, nine Pakistani players were bought by four of the five franchises for the HIL. Uttar Pradesh Wizards were the only team who did not buy a Pak player. Delhi Waveriders (Mohammad Rizwan Sr and Mohammad Rizwan Jr) and Ranchi Rhinos (Shafaq Rasool and Mohd Irfan) bought two Pakistani players each while Mumbai Magicians bought four (Mahmood Rashid, Fareed Ahmad, Mohammad Tousiq and Imran Butt) and Jaypee Punjab Warriors one (Kashif Shah).

Delhi Waveriders’ executive director Amar Sinha said he was hopeful that the two Pak players would join the team by tomorrow afternoon as the Union External Affairs Ministry was co-ordinating with its Pak counterpart and the Pakistan Hockey Federation, though there was general skepticism about the Pak players’ participation following the killings of the two Indian soldiers by Pakistan.

But Ajit Pal Singh, former Indian captain and chief team strategist of Delhi Waveriders, said sports should not be mixed with politics and the Pak players should be allowed to play in the HIL, which was a major initiative to give hockey a big boost not only in India, but also in the whole of Asia.

“Some of the best players will be seen in action, and it was only natural that Pakistan should be represented in the HIL, to give the event the much-needed thrust and momentum”, Ajit Pal Singh opined.

Delhi Waveriders’ captain Sardar Singh also echoed Ajit Pal’s views though he said the Pak players’ absence will not weaken his team. “We have some of the best hockey players in the world in our team, and we are a well-balanced outfit”, Sardar Singh told The Tribune.

But Delhi suffered a major setback when penalty corner specialist Taeke Taekema of The Netherlands pulled out due to a back injury. He was bought by Waveriders for his base price of $25,000 despite the fact he had skipped the London Olympics due to fitness problems. But Sardar said Delhi were packed with enough firepower to give the other teams a run.

“We have one of the best teams, as we have in our ranks quality players. The HIL will give big exposure to the players and the spectators to play and watch world class hockey”, Sardar added.

Meanwhile, the Dhyan Chand National Stadium, which had witnessed two world events in 2010—the World Cup and the Commonwealth Games—is once again gripped by hockey fever as the players have been training hard for the inaugural match on January 14. There will be 34 matches in all leading up to the final match on February 10.