Rajpal Singh to stay as captain

MS Unnikrishnan

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, February 8

Versatile forward Rajpal Singh will stay put as captain of the Indian team for the Hero Honda World Cup Hockey Championship to be held at the Dhyan Chand National Stadium, Delhi, from February 28 to March 13, despite demand from a section of the players to replace him with Prabhjot Singh.

“Rajpal Singh was appointed the Indian team captain by the national selectors and the government observers after due selection process, and there was no question of his replacement”, said a Hockey India source here today.

An 18-member team, with Rajpal Singh as captain, was named by the Hockey India on February 6, after selection trials were held at the National Stadium. The trials were attended by selectors BP Govinda, Madhu Yadav, Sita Mehta and government nominees Ajit Pal Singh and Zafar Iqbal, chief coach Jose Brasa and national coach Harendra Singh.

Surprisingly, Jose Brasa was reportedly behind the move to replace Rajpal with Prabhjot Singh, though the source said it was just not possible to change the captain as the team list had already been forwarded to the International Hockey Federation (FIH).

“Ever heard of a captain being changed on the cusp of a World Cup,” the HI source wondered. He asserted that the “Captaincy issue was a closed chapter and there was no debate on it”.

Rajpal Singh was named the captain for the Champions Challenge in Argentina, following Sandeep Singh’s injury. And Rajpal delivered result with a podium finish at Argentian. “Now on what basis a change in captaincy is sought, that too by bringing in Prabhjot Singh who had never captained the country during the past nine years, when he was a member of the Indian team,” noted the HI official.

He said the rotation of captaincy was tried out at the behest of Brasa during the European tour and then the seven-match series in Canada to find out the best man for the job.

Forwards Sandeep Singh, Tushar Khandear and defender Dhananjay Mahadik were among those tried out to arrive at “a captain who would fit the bill”. Mahadik was not even a regular of the senior team after being part of the Junior World Cup in 2005.

The Hockey India source said the selectors had a job to do, and they did it by retaining Rajpal Singh as they wanted continuity. “The selectors are not ornamental. We cannot overrule their decision”, the source added.

Meanwhile, Hockey India adviser Anupam Gulati announced that a committee had been formed to look into the gradation of players for both senior and junior national teams for men and women. The committee members are: Ajit Pal Singh, MP Ganesh, Zafar Iqbal and Dhanraj Pillai. HI director (planning) Jagbir Singh is the convener of the committee.

Gulati said the captains and national coaches of both the men’s and women’s teams will also be members of the committee, while the president and secretary-general of Hockey India will be the special invitees.