Itching to see hockey, its overdue now.

Itching to see quality hockey, its overdue now.

Sports is all about players, coaches, crowd, — and of course fans.

We are very near to witness a mega event unfolding in Delhi. Am excited about it.

We don’t often get to see in India — undoubtedly motherland of the wonderful game called hockey — hosting both men and women’s hockey tournaments simultaneously.

If you leave the 1975-76 Rane Frank Cup, six years later Asian Games, and then the one-off waste Afro-Asian Games, we don’t have the double whammy.

Like it happened in Chennai, Delhi and Hyderabad in the past, now only the fourth time, we get to see women’s matches a day followed by men’s.

I always hold the view that the women hockey is more competitive than men’s and I hope after the Commonwealth Games much of our people and at least a couple of media men will subscribe to my view.

At the moment, neither the history of hockey at Commonwealth Games nor do the numbers associated with the sport and sportsmen – which are always my passion – excite me.

I am only excited to watch men and women back in action. I want to see hockey on the ground, and it is going to happen right at my door steps.

For long, our valuable time has been wasted on people who don’t matter to sports but unfortunately they were there to kill everybody’s time.

I am itching to see a half volley goal the likes of Tushar ‘Toofan’ Khandkar scored in his first match at Chennai Champions Trophy, again in Delhi, and the same he repeated against Japan at Kuantan. Why not one more, if not many more, for Delhi?

I anticipate the type of hat-trick Dhananjay ‘Daring’ Mahadik scored in as much minutes last year at Ipoh. Why not the same feat on home soils, now?

I want to see eel like Arjun ‘Arrow’ Halappa, only player to remind us for what we are all known in the past –- artful dodges, canny ball distribution etc — snatch the ball from a player who will be double his height but at the moment dwarfed by his ‘stealy’ nerves.

Will ‘recall kid’ of Indian hockey, Bharat Chetri, live upto the confidence reposed by the team management? This question will keep me on toes throughout the tournament, and I am going to enjoy that. This thrill of course is same as that of following the new strategy of team management to have a single goalie.

Goalkeeping has never been our area of strength, despite we being the inheritors of legacy of the likes of Pintos, Laxmans and Francis’.

Now we experiment exactly at goalkeeping.

Every experiment right now is worth its salt. Because our target tournament is Asian Games; Commonwealth Games is a picnic before hard bout. This picnic is pill for India to remember hockey again, that’s why important one.

Indian women have won many a battles on goalkeeping strength. Will they repeat it here?

They are cautious, two goalies are there. It adds another area of joy, who will emerge winners, Men’s or women’s coaching group.

Talking of women, they have equally colourful strikers. Its for too long since Saba, a petrel on the wings, won our hearts. Some fireworks are over due from her.

Will she score now? I feel so, and it will be another exciting phase we are all looking for.

For that she has to outdo many youngsters on the turf, especially Rani ‘Rampage’ Ramphal.

These all excitement pale if one thinks of yet another India-Pak clash?

Between the two, who will be the winner? Will India keep up the tempo, as it outplayed Pakistan March this year, or Pakistan will take revenge?

How many times will we have Sandeep ‘stormy’ Singh’s fisted hands raise?

The whole of India is looking forward to him.

Will the excitement be less when the bandana wearing Shivender ‘Shrill’ Singh’ is around? Am itching to see him salute you and me each time after banging a goal. Hockey need them.

Am also excited to explore, will there be any Australian officials around to suspend him?

Am itching to see everything on ground.

Am yet to get the accreditation, my site is all but ready to remodel to include many new aspects.

But I can’t be different from myself. Am itching to see hockey we all deserved.

Welcome Men and Women hockey team to Delhi.

(Indian women team will check-in at the Games Village today)