No Pakistani at Hockey India League again?

HI chief Batra demands apology for Champions Trophy incident last year

KARACHI: Hockey India (HI) once again demanded an apology from Pakistani hockey players for the obscene gestures they made after their Champions Trophy semi-final win against India last year if they want to play with the team or participate in the Hockey Indian League (HIL).

Following their first win over India after 16 years, some of the Pakistan players took off their shirts and made obscene gestures, after which they were not allowed to play the final against Germany even after an apology letter by the then head coach Shahnaz Sheikh.

“For resuming bilateral ties, HI wants Pakistan to apologise for the incident in Bhubaneswar and also give an undertaking assuring they would reprimand players if they repeat their antics in future,” said HI President Narinder Batra, according to The Times of India.

He also stated that when it comes to India-Pakistan relations, politics and sports cannot be separated and that HI will not tolerate any insults from their neighbours.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Hockey Federation secretary Shahbaz Senior said that they are yet to receive any written statement by HI and cannot say anything on the matter.

“We will give our statement when we receive an official letter from HI,” said Shahbaz. “We are with our players and will act in the best interests of Pakistan hockey.”

The HIL auction is scheduled to take place on September 17, where a total of 271 players across 20 countries will be coming under the hammer, barring those from Pakistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 15^th,  2015.

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