Hockey,our national game, is in a mess. The latest is that Ric Charlesworth, technical advisor, has resigned. AT does a reality check…

These are certainly not Chak De! moments for Indian hockey. As if failing to qualify for the Olympics for the first time in 80 years wasn’t bad enough, Ric Charlesworth, former Australian great and our technical advisor, recently resigned from his post. It’s a far cry from the times when we won gold medals in the Olympics at will and the foreign media used to speculate whether Indian players were resorting to magic (such was the stick work of our players)! Well, we had it coming. When AT had talked to former greats like Gurbux Singh sometime ago, they had voiced their concerns about the services of Charlesworth not being utilized properly. In his statement to the media, Charlesworth lambasted the Sports Authority of India (SAI) for the mess that Indian hockey has become. He also described the country’s administration as a “minefield” of bureaucrats and said that their increasing interference in the sport was a worrying factor. He emphasised that corporatising the game was a must in order to bring back its lost glory, as it would ensure a professional structure, which is non-existent at the moment. The question is: Where do we go from here?

As the game goes through one of its worst phases, hockey lovers are obviously bitter and disappointed. Says former hockey great Gurbux Singh, “It’s really sad to see the current state of Indian hockey. But all Indians, including me, are responsible for this. I was lucky to be a part of Indian hockey when it was on the rise. But in all these years, have we given the game the due that it deserves?” Former goalkeeper Ashish Ballal opines, “I fully agree with the view that the game needs to be corporatised. Today, any sport requires commercialisation. We’ve had enough of these retired bureaucrats and failed politicians interfering in the running of the game. It’s time to have paid professionals , who have high credibility. Setting realistic targets, having vision (which is, unfortunately, lacking) and making each day count should be the order of the day.

Having ad-hoc bodies running such an important game makes no sense.” EJ Samuel, who has coached the Gujarat women’s hockey team in the past, says, “In European countries, they have full government support and the opportunity to practice on the latest astro turfs. Our players don’t even have basic infrastructure. So, how can you expect miracles every time they take the field? We are not lacking in talent. There are so many promising youngsters in places like Jharkhand, Lucknow, Bangalore et al. It’s a mystery as to how we struggle to field a good team of 16.”

Well, given the current scenario, things can only get better from here.