KARACHI: The nomination of half-a-dozen country’s stalwarts of yore for the Hall of Fame by the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) drew severe criticism at a press conference held at the Abdul Sattar Edhi Hockey Stadium on Tuesday.

“Three of the six players — Islahuddin [chief selector], Hasan Sardar [head coach] and Shahbaz Ahmed senior [secretary] are part of the PHF which reflects nepotism as no criteria was laid down and a few notable Olympians were ignored,” reporters asked the PHF vice-president Tariq Huda and Islahuddin, who spelt out the details pertaining to the World XI visit to Pakistan for the two-match series.

The PHF president retired Brig Khalid Sajjad Khokhar and secretary Shahbaz Ahmed were conspicuous by their absence and the briefing backfired.

“It’s just a beginning and the first step for nominating players for Hall of Fame and the other legendary players will be honoured in future,” Huda said about the criteria for selection.

The notable omission of Manzoor Hussain Jr, who is a strong critic of the current PHF setup, was pointed out. Manzoor led the Pakistan team to victory at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, Pakistan’s third Olympic gold after Rome in 1960 and Mexico in 1968.

Pakistan’s each Hall of Fame Olympian will be awarded Rs0.5 million.

Reporters pointed out that contrary to the PHF announcement that renowned penalty corner striker Sohail Abbas will captain the World XI in the first match, the player has expressed ignorance that he was not officially consulted and may not play.

“Abbas has been approached by the PHF secretary and in case he is not available, the World XI players will select another captain from amongst themselves,” Islah said.

At the outset, the PHF vice-president and chief selector reiterated that the World XI visit to Pakistan is aimed at reviving the national game and send a positive message that Pakistan is a peaceful country.

It is pertinent to mention that Pakistan’s sporting image was tarnished globally following attack on Sri Lankan cricket team at Lahore on March 3, 2009, that led to embargo on foreign teams visit to the country.

Clarying his position, Islah said his selection in the list of Hall of Fame by the PHF at their behest is an honour for acknowledging his achievements. Perturbed at the volley of questions, Islah, however, said he was ready to withdraw his name.

According to Islah, the World XI includes 17 players from seven reputed hockey playing nations including the hosts. Some of the players are still playing for their countries, he added.

Tariq Huda said Pakistan enjoyed enviable record in hockey including three Olympics, four World Cups, inaugural junior World Cup besides numerous Asian Games, Champions Trophies and other titles.

“Pakistan’s record of winning four World Cups is still intact despite the fact that the space is available to other teams since 1994 after Pakistan’s last feat at Sydney,” he stated.

The officials did not disclose the approximate budget allocations of hosting the World XI matches and Hall of Fame. When pressed, they said the foreign players will get appearance money between US $ 3,000 to 5,000.

The PHF official thanked the corporate sector for coming forward and playing positive role in the uplift of game.

Meanwhile, the entrance of spectators to the stadium for the first match will be through nominal tickets amounting to, Rs250, Rs500 and Rs1,000.

The first batch of three people, two Dutch celebrities — Paul Litjens and Rob Lathouwers — and Sultan Ahmed (manager designate of World XI) arrived here on Tuesday.

Besides Litjens and Lathouwers, Floris Jan Bovelander (Holland), Christian Blunck (Germany), Juan Escarre (Spain) and Don Prior (Australia) will be the six foreigners to be included in Hall of Fame.

Published in Dawn, January 17th, 2018