Indian hockey and the politics of fear

By Viren Rasquinha

The crisis in Indian hockey seems to be over for the time being. The Indian hockey players are back on the playing field, where they belong, with smiles back on their faces. Nevertheless, there are many problems and issues that need to be sorted out with all parties involved in the sport.

The main issue that led to the crisis was not that Hockey India did not want to pay the players. The issue was the lack of funds available to pay the players and where those funds would come from.

I firmly believe that it’s high time that all the activities of Hockey India be handled by paid professionals led by a CEO who would be accountable for the planning and execution of all activities under the mandate of the organisation.

And like any organisation, this CEO would need a support team in place to look into the various aspects of marketing, sponsorship, finance, legal, PR and, of course, the coaching and development programmes for the players

Hockey India should follow processes like any other corporate organisation with each department having its own KRAs (Key Result Areas) and KPAs (Key Performance Areas) with no room for slackers. Transparency of accounts and activities should be the mantra. If Hockey India shows that it can run like any other professional corporate set-up, I don’t see any reason why corporates would not be falling all over themselves to sponsor Indian hockey and the problem of paucity of funds would never arise.

The salaries that we pay the CEO and his entire team should be looked upon as an investment and not an expense. Hockey in India will flourish but we have to have professional experts running the show.

An organisation is only as good as its people and productivity can only be achieved if there exists a good working relationship internally and mutual respect for each other while working towards a common goal.

The relationship between the players, administrators and officials is definitely strained and this was obvious at the recent press conference in Pune. It was extremely disheartening to see a very condescending attitude towards the players at the Hockey India press conference.

It seemed that the welfare of the players was last on the list of priorities of those in charge. As a former player with the national team, it was hurtful and sad to watch officials allege on television that players put money before pride and passion in playing for the country.

Whereas the truth is that Indian hockey players put their bodies on the line every single time they take the field, knowing full well that if they do get injured there won’t be too many people to even ask how they are doing, let alone foot their medical bills.

There is too much of a fear factor in this player-administrator or player-official relationship. Most players are too scared to pick up the phone and call the officials in charge even if they have a serious family or a personal problem or can’t train for some reason. Sports administrators are usually inaccessible and there is really no one present to listen to the grievances of the players.

At most national camps that I have attended, I have noticed that players just blindly follow what their coaches and trainers tell them to do. No player would dare question the tactics, strategies or training methods.

Any player who does that is branded as “indisciplined” and a “bad” influence on the rest of the players. Dhanraj Pillay and Ashish Ballal, both excellent players in their own right, were always branded as problem players and every coach was supposed to be wary of them. Why? Just because they spoke their minds.

There is too much of a gulf between the administrators and the officials on one side, and the players on the other. If we don’t encourage our national team players to share their problems, to speak out at least within the team when they feel something is going wrong in training or in planning a strategy, then we are doing a grave disservice to the sport.

The time has come for this fear to end. We are stifling the creativity and killer instinct of our players in the guise of maintaining discipline.

I would like to see administrators and officials encouraging the development of a more “peer to peer” relationship between players and coaches and players and administrators.
The players are our national treasure. Let them be at the centre of all plans for the future of Indian hockey. Without them, hockey cannot go on. Listen to their problems, guide them and treat them with the respect they deserve.

Don’t threaten them; trust them. Don’t be afraid to give them responsibility. They will not let you down…