So when Delhi Waveriders overcame Punjab Warriors in a sensational penalty shoot-out to capture their maiden Hockey India League (HIL) crown at on Sunday, not everybody was surprised.
So when Delhi Waveriders overcame Punjab Warriors in a sensational penalty shoot-out to capture their maiden Hockey India League (HIL) crown at on Sunday, not everybody was surprised. There was neither any Twitter trends nor any Facebook shares regarding the win. Only in its edition, the HIL which has recruited many foreign talents with the likes of Jamie Dwyer has failed to light up the Twitter trendsetters or fact of the matter even the fan base. But why should we blame the viewers when the administrators are to be blamed.
Hockey in India is still second to the likes of cricket, even when the former is our national sport. Dhyan Chand fails to get a Bharat Ratna, and a cricketer lands the honours when representing the country only for 20 odd years. The power of cricket, we presume, is so huge that even money is notwithstanding in its shadows. The auction of the IPL is like a casino where players are sold at telling prices and worth mentioning is that a single player bought at the auction is worth the whole Indian hockey team.
Leave aside cricket, the football scene is also very drastic and pitiable. The country is all set to host the U-17 FIFA World Cup in 2017 as FIFA administrators are touring the country and reviewing the stadiums and facilities. Even though many Indian football enthusiasts celebrate this high moment, some stern ones might notice that India still lags behind in the footballing world. When the likes of Brazil and Argentina are superhouses in their own way, India is still picking up the pieces of being a football crazy nation. Go on the streets and ask any football fan on who are the starting eleven players of the Indian football team, there will be a sore face!
Its there to see for everybody where there’s a dissidence between the fans and the administrators. If the governing body would have been run by non-politicos, definitely we could have been a changed animal on the footballing map. But alas, we are still ranked 137th in the world and its only ‘us’ to be blamed.
Can we change the sport decline? Yes, we can if there was any support or financial help to some sports administrations or players. The feat of MC Mary Kom cannot be forgotten who without the help of any governing body or sport officials, made the nation proud with her display at the London 2012 Olympics.
India can produce another Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni or a Virat Kohli (simply due to the money pumped in) but doubt remains over whether this nation will see a Mary Kom or a Bhaichung Bhutia or Vijender Singh…
