Mumbai, April 27 (IANS) Pakistan hockey players are left frustrated at the sport’s administrators in the country for their inability to arrange proper preparation for their two matches against arch-rivals India in the FIH Men’s Pro League 2026 in June this year, a news report claimed on Monday.
The Pakistan hockey team is struggling with no camp and no high-profile coach for the key matches, a report in Telecom Asia Sport has said.
Pakistan is featuring in the nine-team Pro League for the first time, making the grade as a lucky entrant after New Zealand withdrew because of financial constraints. Poor results, besides a lack of preparation, have left them on the verge of being eliminated from the top league involving nine of the strongest teams in the world. Pakistan have lost all their matches with the Netherlands (5-2 and 7-3), Argentina (3-2 and 5-1), Australia (3-2 and 3-0), and Germany (5-2 and 6-1).
They now face India and England in the second last round in the United Kingdom in June, with players disappointed at the Federation not taking the task seriously. The two matches against India are on June 23 and 26.
“Pakistan have not beaten India since 2016, so players wanted full-scale preparations, but there are no signs of any camp or any international coach to meet the challenge a top-class team like India poses in the Pro League,” sources told www.telecomasia.net. “Most of the Pakistan players are playing in European Leagues and Hong Kong, which are part of their individual preparations, which are not complete.”
Pakistan last beat India 1-0 in the SAF Games in Guwahati, India, their last win before losing 14 of their 16 matches with two draws.
“Players had requested the interim setup of Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) for a foreign coach like Roelant Oltmans, who knows a lot about Indian players, but the Federation did not listen,” the report said, quoting sources.
Instead, former Olympian Manzoorul Hasan was appointed head coach. “Manzoorul is an old guy who is hard of hearing and does not know much about the players, nor does he know about modern hockey, so his appointment is of no use,” sources said.
The players are also complaining about the lack of daily allowances. “Players were promised 120 US dollars, but they got only US40 during the World Cup qualifying round in Egypt, and with no central contract and match fee, this leaves players hard on money,” the report said.
“The fate of hockey players is not changing because no one is listening,” a player was quoted as saying in the report. “We are left underpaid and under-prepared, and that leaves us in a tough spot to save the Pro League’s existence.”
–IANS
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