Decision to skip Champions Trophy mind boggling: Islahuddin

Olympian Islahuddin Siddiqui on Monday said that he was really taken aback on hearing Pakistan Hockey Federation’s (PHF) decision of not sending the Pakistan hockey team to England in June to feature in the Champions Trophy even after getting lucky following the Dutch team’s withdrawal from the tournament.

“When Holland withdrew, paving way for Pakistan to play in the six-team event, it was like winning a lottery for us. We were not even entering through a wildcard; we just got in because we were the next team on the waiting list after the top six. How could we just throw away this opportunity?” Pakistan’s most successful hockey captain wondered aloud.

“Playing in the Champions Trophy would have been morale-boosting for our boys after winning the hockey competition in the South Asian Games, beating India,” the chief-de-mission of that tour pointed out.

“As it is, due to security reasons, no big team is touring Pakistan for a series. It would have been a good opportunity for our team to rub shoulders with bigger and better teams. Yes, I admit that we are not a big team anymore. Yes, we may not win any matches there, but think about the benefits of just featuring in such a big event which was started by Pakistan itself in 1978,” said the winning captain of that inaugural Champions Trophy edition in Lahore along with World Cup and the Asian Games.

“I hear the decision of not sending the team is to allow them to concentrate on the World Cup. But they can think of playing in the Champions Trophy for great practice. And then, it is so strange to send the boys to Malaysia for the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, which is to be played before the Champions Trophy. Won’t going there disturb the players’ concentration and preparation for the World Cup? It is mind boggling really,” said Islah.

“Also, Champions Trophy is a ranking tournament, Azlan Shah isn’t! Playing and gaining points in the Champions Trophy could help Pakistan improve in world rankings,” he said.

“If the PHF is afraid of seeing the team end up sixth in the Champions Trophy, they should not forget that the team has done even worse by coming 12th out of 12 teams. Winning and losing is all part of the game. Losing after all makes way for winning. Bringing the Green Shirts up from rock bottom is a process and confidence-building is an important part of that.

“We last won the Champions Trophy 22 years ago, in 1994, the same year we also won the World Cup. Besides, is there any guarantee that we will win the Azlan Shah Cup? If you ask me, there are more gains than losses in sending the Pakistan team to England for Champions Trophy,” Islah concluded.

(Source: Dawn News)