DUBAI // The strained political relations between neighbours India and Pakistan has seen their cricketing ties suffer over the years, but Narinder Batra, the new president of the International Hockey Federation (FIH), has said there will be no such issues on the hockey pitch.
If India cannot travel to Pakistan for their hockey matches, then the two subcontinental neighbours will face each other on neutral ground, with Hasan Sardar, the former Pakistan captain, calling for the matches to be played in the UAE instead.
During their four-day Hockey Revolution Conference here in Dubai, the FIH announced plans for a completely rejigged global calendar from 2019, doing away with the Champions Trophy, one of international hockey calendar’s most coveted tournaments, and introducing a new “Home and Away” league.
The league will see six to nine national teams, both men and women, playing each other on a home and away basis, and India and Pakistan, given the passion for the sport in those two countries, should certainly feature in the league.
Asked if India will agree to travel to Pakistan for these league matches, Batra, who will be stepping down as president of Hockey India after taking over as the FIH chief, is confident they will.
“There are certain political compulsions between India and Pakistan, certain political issues,” Batra said. “When they start, when they stop, nobody has any idea. But international commitments, you cannot refuse, whether you are India or you are Pakistan.
“If India and Pakistan are part of the home and away global league, we will have to play each other. It is as simple as that.
“You cannot ignore your international commitments. If India tries to ignore their international commitment, or Pakistan tries to do that, then you will miss the bus to the Olympics and you cannot afford to do that.
“Talking as the president of Hockey India, I just want to add one more thing: Me and the president of the Pakistan federation, we sat together and we have resolved all our past issues.”
Batra, however, does understand the security situation in Pakistan could also be an obstacle towards India allowing their team to travel to Pakistan.
The 2005 Champions Trophy was the last major international tournament held in Pakistan and the last time India visited their neighbours for a bilateral series was in 2006.
The new FIH chief is hoping the situation will improve enough over the next two years to allow Pakistan to host their matches at home.
“India-Pakistan have always been high intensity games, with good viewership,” Batra said. “So home-and-away, I believe, will be a good addition to that, and I am a strong supporter of home-and-away.
“But if, and I am saying if, a team cannot travel to Pakistan because of any political reasons, then we always have a neutral venue as an option and then it is for Pakistan to decide which neutral venue they select to play their home matches. Of course, the venue needs to meet the FIH’s minimum standard requirements.”
Should Pakistan be forced to play their home matches at neutral venues, Sardar, who won Olympic gold with Pakistan at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, believes UAE should be at the top of the list for alternative venues.
The Pakistan cricket team are already playing their home matches here in the UAE.
“The year 2019 is still far off and we hope things will normalise and international hockey will return to Pakistan,” said Sardar, who was representing the Pakistan Hockey Federation at the FIH Congress here.
“We would see our team play India before our home crowds, but then, we know that decision can be made only at the political level. We are athletes.
“Of course, there has been no stop in the hockey ties between the two countries. Our junior team will be visiting India for the Junior World Cup next month (December 8-18) in Lucknow and our senior team travelled to India for the Champions Trophy.
“Yes, India have not played in Pakistan for many years, but that is because we have not had any major sporting events in the country.
“I believe fans of the two countries want to see us play each other at home, but if the situation does not normalise and international hockey cannot return to Pakistan, then we will have to play our home matches at a neutral venue and the UAE is the best option for us.”
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