HI bans ‘repeat offenders’ Sandeep, Sardar for two years

Nitin Sharma

Running out of patience with “repeat offenders” and compelled at the need of setting a strong precedent for the future, Hockey India (HI) on Saturday banned midfielder Sardar Singh and drag-flick specialist Sandeep Singh for two years after a disciplinary committee meeting. The verdict, covering both domestic and international matches, puts the career of Sandeep and Sardar’s, both 25 years of age, in serious jeopardy.

The two had last week quit the Indian team’s camp in Bangalore midway after a verbal altercation with new coach Michael Nobbs and other support staff — their third such act of indiscipline in six months. Earlier, they had skipped camp for a WSH promotional event without permission in July this year. The first breach of conduct occurred when they chose to play in the Belgian professional league, instead of reporting for the national camp before Azlan Shah tournament in April.

The players, though, have a right to appeal against the ban within 30 days to HI and a separate Appeals Committee will be put in place, which is likely to have representatives from HI, Indian Olympic Association, Sports Authority of India amongst others. When contacted, the players did indicate their intentions of filing an appeal to make a comeback.

‘No hard feelings’

“We haven’t got the letter yet but if they have already banned us, we can’t do anything. We had told them about our problem and it was up to them to decide. We do not have any hard feelings against anybody,” said Sardar Singh, speaking to The Sunday Express. “We’ve always felt pride in representing India. We will always be available whenever the team wants us to play.”

Sandeep, on the other hand, chose not to express his opinion in public. “I do not want to say anything. Whatever they (committee) have done, they should explain it better,” he said.

Meanwhile, HI secretary general Narinder Batra clarified why such an extreme step was important. “The disciplinary committee discussed this issue in detail. They might be amongst the best players in the side, but their indiscipline was hampering the team,” he said.

“This has happened for the third time in six months and they are repeated offenders. They apologise, but indulge in some act of indiscipline again. Enough is enough and some action needs to taken. We’ve decided to ban them for a period of two years and during this time, they can’t participate in any international or national event,” Batra added.

Batra also dismissed the statement given to the disciplinary committee by the two players, saying that they had left with the permission of the coach and had pressing personal reasons to leave. “They claim they left the camp with the coach’s permission. But their tickets were booked in the afternoon and they came for permission only in the evening”, he said.

Amongst those present in the hearing included, selectors, players representatives, government observer Harbinder Singh, head coach Nobbs, camp in charge SS Grewal, assistant coaches, exercise physiologist David John and physio Srikant Iyengar.