NEW DELHI: Ashok Kumar was furious when Sangai Channu snatched the ball away
from him – his mind simply refused to accept that he had lost the ball when
it seemed stuck to his stick!
And why not? For, 30 years back that was unimaginable, in fact something the
media would have made a titanic bawl about. But yesterday, during the
charity match between former Olympians and the present Indian women’s hockey
team at Delhi’s Shivaji Stadium, Ashok Kumar quickly realised that his body
was giving away. But before you start imagining contours of flab on the
middle-aged potbelly, here’s to remind once more that he lasted the whole
duration of the match – thanks to those “daily sessions of skipping and
regular exercises,” as he put it.

Zafar Iqbal was more gracious in accepting the inevitable: “Age has caught
up with me. I don’t have the stamina any more.” Joaquin Carvalho admitted
after the game that he needed an immediate appointment with a masseur to get
over the stiffness. Meanwhile, it was clearly evident that V. Bhaskaran, the
former India international and coach, had picked up a stick after a break of
nearly a year was – the tired face and legs gave away all the ‘secrets’!

M.P. Ganesh was more fortunate. “I jog for
about 25 km a week, (thus) I am not bad on stamina, but to last an entire
hockey match you need speed as well.” Govinda, however, still defies age and
“plays regularly in the Chennai league” for his employers” – and that was
evident in the match as he successfully thwarted every single challenge and
rarely did the ball pass him to enter the ‘dangerous zone’.

Maybe it was a wee bit easier for Mukesh Kumar, Ashish Ballal and Ramandeep
Singh, the most recent entrants into the team of former Oympian XI.
…Because cause is still dear
to their heart…
But the moot point here is not their level of fitness or
oh-just-missing-that skills. It is their presence that counted yesterday,
and it was telling, for the cause couldn’t have been nobler – a charity
match to help one of their own, former Olympian Vivek Singh, who is
suffering from cancer.
Mohammed Shahid, the former India skipper and skills-man personified, came
all the way from Varanasi, while Carvalho, Merwyn Fernandes and Ashish
Ballal all made arrangements on their own to come from Mumbai and Bangalore
respectively and play for their mate’s cause.
The women’s team, which assembled at the Shivaji Stadium yesterday, too
deserves its quota of laurels.

The match, conducted by the Hockey
Journalists’ Association, was a huge success and the packed stands were a
sight to appreciate as well, as people came from all corners to catch their
heroes of yesteryears in action – once again.

The game managed to raise a fund of nearly Rs 5 lakh and Gauri Shankar
Singh, the ailing Vivek’s father, was happy to see “everyone coming forward
to help my son, who has given his best to the country.” Sports Minister
Sunil Dutt added to the star value and his promises for hockey and the
players were soothing for the ears.
Even Dhanraj Pillay, who was present at the event, wanted to get into gear
and be part of the action on the pitch, but couldn’t find place in this team
packed with talent from another era! And none of the players, despite all
the huff and puff, were willing to leave the field.
The result was academic but the Olympians managed to hold the women’s team
for a goalless draw.