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India

Mark Hoogstad

Don't mind me asking, but what did the Indian hockey team have in their heads when they got on the plane to Holland for the Rabo Trophy last week?

"Let's see if there are some nice blonde chicks around?" Or, "Let's check out the wooden shoes and the tulips around, because we were told they are really worth seeing?"

It ought to be something like that! Because, after watching India's three group matches at the Mini-World Cup Hockey tournament, there has to be just one harsh and bitter conclusion: The boys in blue should have stayed home instead of pretending they had something to look for on the turf.

Three matches played, three pathetic losses, and no one seems to understand why this happened.

Moreover -- and that's all the more worrying -- no one even seems to care! Some of the players were smiling after the shameful 1-3 defeat against arch-rivals Pakistan as if they were up to their first party at school, where the beautiful girl from next door would be one of the attending stars.

I have seen a couple of India-Pakistan hockey games in my time as a hockey writer, but this one -- on a sunny afternoon at the Wagener Stadium in Amstelveen -- surely was the worst of them all. Good heaven, what a mismatch!

What I missed? Well, nearly everything, and first of all, the quality of play. This India-Pakistan tie was like a junior match, executed by 22 players who acted like they got to know about the ball and stick just a couple of days before the match.

The game was like a pinball machine, full of opportunism and short of the passion one would expect when two rivals meet.

There was fear (of another humbling defeat?) all around and resignation on both sides afterwards: We couldn't do better, sorry about that, and see you next time - that sort of thing. The only fireworks came from the stands, where some Pakistan supporters lit a bunch of firecrackers in the dying minutes of the game.

Pakistan paid a heavy price for the 'imprisonment' of two of their leading players, who didn't quit - as we all know - for no reason: Sohail Abbas and Waseem Ahmed. Since they left and now play for the Dutch club HC Rotterdam, The Green Machine is just an ordinary automobile, glad that it still has some fuel in the tank. This was India's chance, but they failed to grab it.

Two years ago, India and Pakistan played a fascinating match at the Wagener Stadium, resulting in a thrilling 7-4 win for India. Unfortunately I had to miss that one because my second daughter was born on the same evening. No regrets about that, but Thursday I sat down with lots of expectations. I got deceived.

One question remains: Where is the midfield? Viren Rasquinha is a very fine and skilful player, but this week, the balls are just floating around his ears. He can't do anything, because his teammates are just not able to involve him in the game. Rasquinha is the poor lonesome cowboy of Indian hockey, and my heart is with him.

(Mark Hoogstad is sportswriter for Dutch daily and Rotterdam-based newspaper NRC Handelsblad)

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