Another mauling, another commission

It is sad but it is, as of today, the harsh reality: field hockey, the national sport of the country, is dead in Pakistan. Some may call it an overstatement of the current scenario but without an overhauling of the present setup the national game of Pakistan is not going to regain its lost grandeur. Pakistan has the most number of World Cup wins, still. No team has been able to meet the glory that the Men in Green once boasted, but the politics and incompetency of the hockey officials have pushed hockey towards a downward spiral. The recent past, although horrific to even recount, is still a proof that hockey needs a revamp.

The 2010 World Cup saw us finish last, out of the 12 participating nations. If that was not enough, the team didn’t even qualify for the 2014 spectacle. However, things seemed to change for the better when Pakistan travelled to India to participate in the World Cup this time around, but what came out was another catastrophe. Zero victories, one draw and four losses were all the team could muster up, which included a 5-1 and a 5-0 thrashing at the hands of the Netherlands and Belgium, respectively. Infighting in the Pakistan Hockey Federation, no proper payment for players, a lack of experienced coaching staff and the unattended control of ‘Olympians’ on the governing body are all reasons for the downfall, but this is just scratching the surface.

Recently, former coach Roelant Oltmans revealed something which was an equal shock to him and everyone else. He said in an interview that the players don’t even know the positions and the roles players acquire during a match. Words like defender, midfielder and striker were just that, words. They didn’t even know their strengths and weaknesses. No idea of formations and who plays where. All in all, government’s lack of intervention and the control of the old guard over the federation need to end if we are to save Pakistan hockey.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 15^th, 2018.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.