FIH order has players wary, organisers defiant

Despite the International Hockey Federation (FIH) terming the proposed World Series Hockey as “unofficial” and asking national associations to stay away from it, organisers of the league have decided to stick to their schedule and go ahead as planned. However, the national players who have already signed with the league are more circumspect, insisting that playing for India was their first priority.

A joint venuture between the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) and Nimbus Sports, the WSH is to be launched in November this year with around 10 private franchises. Responding to the FIH threat, IHF president RK Shetty said it amounted to interference in Indian hockey’s domestic matters.

“I am really surprised why the FIH is interfering in our internal matters. It is a tournament which will be held in India and not in any other country. It is just a 45-day pro-development tournament and will not clash with FIH events. I don’t know why suddenly the FIH is acting like a big brother,” Shetty said.

“We will be going ahead with the tournament. There is no question of backing out. We are organising the tournament for the benefit of the players and for the development of hockey,” he said, adding that the federation would not hesitate in taking legal recourse if the FIH insists on derecognising the league.

The FIH had earlier this week informed all national associations that it does not recognise the league and any player or association participating in the event can be declared ineligible to participate in FIH events, including the Olympics and th World Cups. “We recognise Hockey India as the sole governing body for the sport in India,” the letter stated.

The WSH, launched last month with the organisers signing the likes of India captain Rajpal Singh, Sandeep Singh, Sardara Singh, Adrian D’Souza, Dhananjay Mahadik, Arjun Halappa among others for the tournament, has run into trouble from the outset.

While Hockey India has already warned that players signing with the league may not be allowed to be part of the national camp, major employers of the players — including Air India and Indian Oil — have asked their respective players to stay away from it. And on Thursday, the Pakistan Hockey Federation became the first foreign federation to offically ask its players to avoid signing with the league.

In the dark

On their part, the Indian players who have signed up with the league refused to comment on the FIH order, saying they are yet to get official information. “I didn’t know about this (FIH’s order). For any player representing the country is most important but let’s see what happens,” Rajpal Singh said on the FIH’s diktat.

“I have no knowledge about the order. If the FIH doesn’t recognise it, we will have to abide by its decision. We can’t go against the FIH and risk our participation in international events,” drag-flicker Sandeep Singh said. Veteran Arjun Halappa agreed. “I haven’t heard anything. I will have to check it out on the FIH’s website first. But playing for the country is the foremost priority of every player,” Halappa said.