KARACHI, July 18: While the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) recently encouraged a bunch of undisciplined players by saying they would be considered in future, the ‘talent grooming’ training camp coach Hanif Khan booted out three youngsters for indiscipline on Wednesday.
The former Pakistan captain, assigned to spot and groom talent, sent the trio of Mudassir Abbas, Sibtain and Junaid home after they skipped the training sessions for three to four days.
“The three players were absent from the camp without valid reasons. They were roaming around in the city but not reporting for training. I have sent them home as they didn’t show serious approach. There is no place for them here,” Hanif told Dawn at Hockey Club of Pakistan.
Although Hanif believes that Mudassir is a fine talent, he says he will not compromise on discipline. The Olympian said three players would not be considered for the forthcoming eight-team talent grooming tournament which begins on Aug 6 in Lahore.
Apart from Karachi, the PHF has set up similar camps in Lahore, Faisalabad, Bahawalpur, Quetta, Peshawar and Bannu. The objective is to scout and groom young talent for the senior side in preparation for December’s Champions Trophy in Lahore and Beijing Olympics next August.
Hanif’s decision should be an eye-opener for the PHF since it recently shifted stance when secretary Khalid Mahmood announced that Mohammad Saqlain, Sohail Abbas and Waseem Ahmad would be considered for selection if they proved their physical fitness.
The trio, along with Ghazanfar Ali and Dilawar Hussain, was debarred by PHF chief Zafarullah Jamali last November while announcing the Doha Asian Games squad. Jamali had taken a firm stand when the three players didn’t pay heed despite calls to attend Doha event camp and ditched Pakistan to play in foreign league.
The so-called ‘talent grooming’ in Karachi seems to be a formality since many trainees have either past their prime or are not mature enough to graduate to senior team.
“I agree that there are several players who are not eligible to play for senior side at this juncture now. Some of them are currently playing and are good domestic players but cannot be seen as potential Pakistan team players,” said Hanif.
“I can say that only Owais Khan, Rizwan Khan, Rashid Yaqoob, Samiullah and Imran Khan can and should earn a place in the senior side. Then there are players who have lots of potential such as Adeel Hussain, Azlan Khan and Haseem Khan, but they are not mature enough to move from junior to senior outfit. If they are promoted now, their careers will be destroyed,” added the former mercurial left-in.
Asked why such ageing and immature players had been included in the camp, Hanif said he was facing the dilemma as he had no choice because of dearth of players.
“We don’t have players in great numbers who meet the requirement. So I had to include players who really do not have chances to make it to senior side.”
To name a few, Jawaid Mazhar, Iftikhar Ahmad, Wasif Khan, Junaid Hussain are among those who perform well for their departments but are at twilight of their careers.
Hanif, however, has been his usual dedicated self in the training sessions, yelling orders and correcting the often faltering youngsters as he supervises the 32 trainees. The camp concludes on July 29.