Indian hockey needs complete revamp- Former goalkeeper Negi says
Legendary player and former goalkeeper of Indian hockey team, Ranjan Negi suggested a complete revamp of the Indian hockey management and offered his assistance in the best interests of the sport in the country.
The quandary in the Indian hockey is intensifying with every passing day; one that commenced with the surrender of national coach, Harendra Singh followed by a mud-slugging campaign between skipper Rajpal Singh and chief coach Jose Brasa. The dilemma erupted
when Indian hockey team failed to qualify for the 2012 London Olympics after receiving defeat by emerging Malaysia in the semi-final of the 16th Asian Games.
The former coach, Ranjan Negi while talking to media said that the need of the hour is to bring changes in the Indian hockey for betterment of the sport in the country. He further said that he was ready to serve the game in any capacity.
Ranjan Negi said, “Indian hockey needs changes, a complete overhaul in the administration in India and said he was willing to offer any service if needed for improvement of the game.”
The former custodian of the Indian hockey team also blamed Spanish-born chief coach, Jose Brasa and charged him for defeat of the Indian squad in the Asian Games. He stated that Jose Brasa could not communicate with the players, which was the main cause
behind the team’s failure in the Asiad. A foreign coach could not understand the mindsets of the Indian players, he added.
Blaming the Spaniard for failure of the team, Ranjan Negi stated that a foreign coach could not comprehend the attitude of the team’s players, adding that Brasa was a pompous person who never consulted the other coaching staff and the players.
The former coach further said, “Jose Brasa is a kind of a loner and not a team person. He hardly discusses the problems of the team and its players with the assistants coach. He approaches the media all by himself and restrains the assistant coach from
saying anything.”
Negi was of the view that a good assortment and understanding is vital for upgrading the performance of a team in grounds. A coach or trainer can be triumphant and prepare a best squad if he/she works beyond ego, he added.
There are two sides of foreign coaches in a country like India where players come from different cultures, regions and beliefs; it constitutes the positive side and the negative side. The positive side of foreign coaches is that they are not biased towards
any player and they never easily bear the federations’ pressure regarding team’s affairs.
The other side of the picture is that foreign coaches could not able to understand the pulse and sentiments of a team’s players, which plays major role in successes of a team.
Ranjan Negi maintained that a coach would have to understand the sentiments of all players of a team if he/she wants to produce results. A player hailing from Punjab and the other one from Mumbai could not have same mental capacity, he added.
To a query, the former coach asserted that he is ready to take the charge of the team if the nation demands, adding that he was always ready to offer his services to the Men’s and Women hockey teams.
India, the founding country of hockey, which taught the game to the world, is now seeking support of a foreign coach to push up the ranking of the Indian squad.
Contrary to fact, hockey in India is being handled by people who had never taken part in any tournament or even not played a single match. That is the main reason behind the declining of the sport and debacle on international turfs.
Tags: