Consolidation need of hour

The dearth of international sports celebrities, leaving aside cricketers, in India is so abysmally low that one good showing and the nation goes into a frenzy, championing an ethereal case for such meteor-like sparks. This psyche holds good and becomes glaringly evident when someone like a Saina Nehwal or a Sania Mirza hits the headlines with one odd win. Anyone who follows the chequered careers of Indians sportspersons and their notorious inconsistency at the highest level will agree that there has never been a full season of celebration in any non-cricketing discipline barring perhaps raising a toast for the achievements of individual benchmark setters like Abhinav Bindra, Pankaj Advani, Viswanathan Anand and Jeev Milkha Singh.

Today, the nation is agog with the ‘exploits’ of the men hockey players, who seem to have ‘rediscovered’ the form of yore. It is rather depressing that an Asian gold that eluded the nation for four successive editions or a series triumph over the near-invincible Australians (the first in eons) are being trumpeted as the pathway to the era when Indian, nay sub-Continent, hockey dictated the world order. There is no room for doubt that there is suddenly a wave of optimism that Indian hockey is back on rails. One is not reading too much into the changed equations on the global canvas, wherein Indian hockey has lost whatever bit of invincibility it enjoyed. But if one takes the latest twin-success as a long-term relevance, it becomes clear that despite its significance, such flashes of brilliance emanated earlier also, and on each occasion they fizzled out in double-quick time. It is this fallacy that one has to address if India has to stay at the top, or at least be considered a title contender. Although, the ‘national sport’ tag has lost its sheen, hockey still has its avowed patrons and followers. Pargat Singh and Zafar Iqbal, whose languid grace remain peerless, have rightly opined that the boys working together more often has helped them jell as a team. Yet, the talk of revival appears premature, which in turn may impact the players’ morale and give birth to avoidable complacency. The only positive development that needs to be appreciated is that Hockey India has announced hefty rewards for the annual awards that have been instituted over the weekend. This monetary incentive (the IPL-type league has been a financial disaster) could hopefully boost the spirit and the players may produce more consistent performances against the seasoned campaigners for whom words like wizardry and stick-play are anathema, while India and Pakistan still swear by these outdated words. It is time the fundamentals are changed once and for all. The players ought to remember that their next tryst with destiny is round the corner - Champions Trophy slated to be held between December 6 and 14 will show where exactly India stands on the global firmament, the Asian inspiration notwithstanding.