Ex-hockey star struggling against odds!

While watching his maternal uncle and hockey wizard Kunwar Digvijay Singh 'Babu' in action, Mahendra Singh always wanted to play for the country in same position. But he wasn't aware that he would be struggling even for a small sum of Rs 2000 in future.

The veterans of three nationals in 70's, former hockey star of Uttar Pradesh Mahendra Singh now days has become a 'shuttlecock' to get his Rs 2000 p.m. pension from the Mayawati-led State Government, which made a lot of promises for the former and present sportspersons of the State after assuming the power.

Before playing his first nationals at Hyderabad in 1963, the former right-in Singh let his stick do the talking against Afghanistan (1958), Holland (1959) and Germany (1962) in hockey series, and thereafter he had impressive run in all three nationals Hyderabad (1963), Chennai (1964) and Pune (1965).

"I had no idea that after putting everything of mine for the game, I would be struggling for my survival too," says Mahendra Singh, who now has developed some problem in his ears.

"I used to play with my uncle (KD Singh) and I was determined to become a great hockey player like him," says Singh, who is now a farmer. After being rated as 'state player' the State Government through its Uttar Pradesh Sports Directorate sanctioned him a sum of Rs 2000 as monthly pension in November last year, and the orders regarding the regular payment was sent to Sitapur's sports officer.

But, since then Singh is struggling for the payment of his first pension. "On January 30 too, I was told by the clerk that come next time as he was busy and this was for the 10th time when he told me like this," says Singh. "No body in the Sitapur sports office is ready to hear my problem. I know that the clerk wants some share in my pension, but I am ready to do it," adds Singh.

Naipaul on Cricket

Keeping with my newly found passion for reading, I discovered something about West Indian Cricket. It bears a stamp of foresight from the author, VS Naipaul. That one paragraph in the second chapter of the book titled, "The Middle Passage", Naipaul mentions about how critical cricket proved to be for Trinidad - an island that was unique in its demeanor and attitude towards life. And then comes a long-term view of West Indian cricket, which has puzzled all of us through the last one decade -

Cricket has always been more than a game in Trinidad. In a society which demanded no skills and offered no rewards to merit, cricket was the only activity which permitted a man to grow to his full stature and to be measured against international standards. Alone on a field, beyond obscuring intrigue, the cricketer's true worth could be seen by all. His race, education, wealth did not matter. We had no scientists, engineers, explorers, soldiers or poets. The cricketer was our only hero-figure. And that is why cricket is played in the West Indies with such panache; that is why for a long time to come, the West Indians will not be able to play as a team. The individual performances was what mattered. That was what we went to applaud; and unless the cricketer had heroic qualities, we did not want to see him, however valuable he might be. And that was why, those stories of failure, that of the ruined cricketer was the most terrible. In Trinidad lore, he was a recurring figure; he appears in the Trinidad play, Moon on a Rainbow Shawl by Errol John.

Its unfortunate that West Indies as a cricket team has deteriorated drastically in since 2000. That was the time when Naipaul's critical cynicism comes back and reminds us how important the game is to the islands who are not necessarily in the pink of economic health or even a stable political system. Cricket means so much to the West Indies - in terms of geographical unification and beyond just that.

There was a breath of fresh air when Trinidad qualified for the 2006 World Cup, so much so that the West Indies cricket team playing against India in a Test series had its eyes firmly on what Leo Beenhakker's men were about to achieve. Trinidad found a new sport to express itself, fifteen new role-models. They might have not set the world alight in terms of scoring goals, but the football team typified the spirit the nation displays - the passionate splinter that refuses to die down.

Pillay Unplugged

Former Hockey ace Dhanraj Pillay doesn't seem ready to accept that Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) would allow legendary Aussie forward Richard Charlesworth enough space to do his best for the uplift of the team's performance at the international level.

The ace forward Pillay, while praising the qualities of Charlesworth as technical advisor to Indian hockey team, feels that politics 'involved' in the IHF won't give Charlesworth a free hand to do his best.

"He is a legend, who has contributed immensely to world hockey, and don't think that IHF is ready to accept such a man, who can become a problem for them in future with his good working," Pillay said just before playing in an exhibition match in memory of ex-Olympian Vivek Singh in Varanasi early this week.

"In IHF no body is allowed to work freely and that's why senior players were always neglected. And if the IHF continues to behave like this with Ric too, there association will come to an end immediately." He also expressed his anger on IHF for ignoring him for the just concluded Premier Hockey League. "Denying me a chance to play hockey in the PHL was a crime committed by the IHF, and this proved that how IHF is working on whims and fancies of some opportunist people."

Baptism by Fire

A baptism of fire you’d say. But I thought it was a trifle harsh on poor Manoj Tiwary. Barely 48 hours Down Under he is asked to take on one Brett Lee. Have a heart, one would take that many hours just to get accustomed to a new room, forget a new country and that too with hostile bowling conditions.

He was selected on merit for a tour of Bangladesh and had he succeeded — a probability of that would be close to one — things could have been different. Who knows? But as luck would have it, he had to come back following an injury. This time going to Australia as a standbye one would argue that he’s at least got a chance. But if the match against Australia, is the only one he’s going to get, it would be injustice. More so, when the selection in the first match is justified by the ‘instinct’ of M.S. Dhoni.

Lack of Interest

IT SEEMS that the younger generation of Lucknow lacks love for the national game hockey. This was very much evident in the 19^th Balrampur Chini All-India KD Singh ‘Babu’ Sub-Junior Hockey Tournament, which Uttar Pradesh won for the seventh successive time on Saturday.

Out of 16-member team of the State, no one was from Lucknow, which still holds the pride for producing great hockey players in the past, including Major Dhyan Chand and Kunwar Digvijay Singh 'Babu'.

"Now, every young player try his luck in cricket and that's the reason why hockey is being neglected in the heartland of the game also," said ex-hockey coach of Sports College Pandit Ram Autar Mishra.

"I find hockey much costly than the cricket. If you have a bat and ball you can play cricket throughout the day, but in hockey everyone requires a hockey stick to play," he said, adding, "Moreover, the parents do encourage their wards only for the games like cricket, tennis, badminton etc."

"Undoubtedly, the interest for the game is lacking very much among the younger generation. But we all have to come forward to regenerate the interest of them in the game."

Golden era!

Team India speedster Rudra Pratap Singh feels that the selection of as many as four cricketers from the State in Team India should be considered as a golden era of cricket in Uttar Pradesh.

"It's a great moment for all of us that a large chunk of team members of the national side belong to Uttar Pradesh, which has no dearth of talent," said Rudra during his short stay in the State Capital after returning from Australia.

"Suresh Raina, Piyush Chawla and Praveen Kumar are very talented and I am sure that these guys would surely make a mark, whenever they get a chance for this," said Rudra, adding, "Some more youngsters like Tanmay Srivastava etc. are coming up gradually at the senior level, and in future too we can see more faces of Uttar Pradesh in the Team India."

Dronacharyas no more

Dipika Pallikal can well throw her squash racquet into the bin and pursue a career in films and modelling. The Sweet 16 lass from Chennai has what it takes to be a ‘role model’, but the British Open junior champion has decided to stick to squash - her first love - and dedicate her next few years to the sport - if the moribund and stinking sports system in the country allows here to do it.

After her return from the UK recently, where she won the prestigious Under-17 title --- equivalent to the world championship crown --- she finds herself being trashed by the Squash Racquet Federation of India (SRFI) and its Dronacharya Awardee coach Cyrus Poncha, who proclaims he taught her how to hold the racquet!

The petite girl has been ejected from the team for the Asian Championships is Kuwait from Feb 13 to 21, 2008 and with the SRFI not giving her the proper feedback, she flew off to Cairo to train with the Egyptian national coach.

All those who follow squash would know that the SRFI only wants players from Tamil Nadu - more specifically the Indian Cement Limited Academy wards - to prosper. Rest all can go for a walk.

What happens to players like Pallikal in that case? The most talented squash player to come out of the system would probably be consumed by the system. Some other day, another Dronacharya Awardee will commit the cardinal mistake, and the cycle will go on….

Have all these Dronacharyas of sport forgotten the tenets the great Drona preached and stood for hundreds of years back?