I am ready for captaincy: Sandeep

Sunil Narula

As the organisers of the Liberals Hockey Tournament gathered in front of the main entrance at the PPS School grounds here, a grey SUV slowly pulled up and the striking figure of Sandeep Singh emerged from the vehicle. The Indian team’s ace drag-flicker had driven to the venue all the way from his native Shahbad in Haryana to be the special guest at this tournament and to encourage and motivate the young players.

After speaking with them, Sandeep is quite candid in his assessment of the current hockey scenario in the country as he chats with The Tribune. “Young talent is there in the country but these boys will only take up hockey and get motivated if we seniors start winning tournaments at the international level,’’ he said.

Attitude, aloofness and tantrums which are an integral part of any top Indian cricketer’s image are conspicuous by their absence here. Sandeep is quite chilled out, relaxed and speaks his mind in an affable manner.

Asked about the captaincy of the hockey team, he responds: “Yes, I’m ready. If the captaincy is given to me, I’m ready for the challenge,” says Sandeep.

After Jose Brasa’s departure, the search is on for a new coach as well and Sandeep has an image in mind. “The team has been involved in a lot of controversies in the past. There is really no need for these type of things. We need a coach who is good at man-management. At this level, more than the game what we need is someone who can maintain a good balance and relationship with the players and the federation. That is what has been lacking in the past and has led to controversies and misunderstanding,” says the player who was the highest goal-scorer in the Asian Games recently with 11 strikes.

“It was just five minutes of bad play in Guangzhou that cost us a win. There are some important tournaments coming up for us like the Azlan Shah and I’m looking forward to that,’ he says.

Sandeep, who is a DSP with Haryana Police, says he still has to find time to complete the training at the Police Academy in Madhuban. “I still have to go through that. It is compulsory. Also, I want to continue with my studies and have joined a correspondence course. For me studies are also very important,” he says. That part will surely come in handy when he has to deal with the media on a regular basis if he does become the captain of the Indian hockey team in the near future.

WR, PSB in final

Western Railway Mumbai will meet Punjab and Sind Bank in the final of the Liberals Hockey Tournament here on Sunday. PSB beat Punjab National Bank 2-1 and Western Railway beat EME Jalandhar 5-1.