BANGALORE: As the approaching summer sun warmed up and bore down in full glow on the the synthetic turf of the hockey stadium, there was another warming up exercise on view.
A player with blue jersey, shorts and a blue jacket was racing down on the right. As he called for the ball, the rather shrill voice seemed familiar. And as you saw that tuft of hair dance up and down, the mane of the man who was the face of Indian hockey for long revealed who the worthy was. Yes, the legendary Dhanraj Pillay strode on to the turf with the same kind of majesty that he did during his more serious playing days.
Now with the Karnataka Lions for the ensuing World Hockey Series bash, Dhanraj was evidently excited about the entire gamut of the new exercise. But he also appeared to be rather disturbed by the ongoing power struggle between two factions in Indian hockey.
As always, he was optimistic though that things will fall into place sooner than later and the game will see better days in future.
“I last played in the CM’s Cup at this venue two years ago. I hope they revive it and make it an annual affair because Karnataka has outstanding talent waiting to be tapped and tournaments of this kind go a long way in doing that,” Dhanraj said in an exclusive chat with the Express.
“In my 25 to 26 years of playing the game at all levels, leagues, nationals, Asian Games, Olympic Games, World Cups, PHL, I have never seen hockey players signing contracts worth about `13 lakh to `15 lakh to play in a tournament that will last just about a month,” said the 43-year old Dhanraj.
“Everyone must be happy that someone has come forward to do something to give the players and the game an enormous boost,” said Dhanraj, the recipient of the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and Padma Shri awards.
“The WSH is the best thing to happen in Indian hockey. The courts have also said that players can play. The players need money, there is a need to glamourise the sport, it must be on television for long periods. And the WSH is doing all this and more. I only hope everyone supports the idea and it goes through without any more hitches,” Dhanraj said.
Between 1989 and 2004, the Pune-born Dhanraj played 339 international matches, scored about 180 international goals and is the only player to have played in four Olympics (1992, 1996, 2000, and 2004), four World Cups (1990, 1994, 1998, and 2002), four Champions Trophies (1995, 1996, 2002, and 2003), and four Asian Games (1990, 1994, 1998, and 2002) in his illustrious career.
The star forward who captained India to victory in the 1998 Bangkok Asian Games and the 2003 Asia Cup, felt that Karnataka Lions are the best team in the WSH. “We have very good players in all departments. Once the full team arrives, we can work together better and play well,” said Dhanraj.
“Obviously, with many players figuring in the Olympic qualifiers we haven’t been able to practise together. Yes, the time is rather short but I hope to put them through their paces and do my best,” said Jude Felix, Dhanraj’s senior India teammate often and coach of Karnataka Lions.
“It is good to have someone like Dhanraj. He has been an inspiration to hockey players for decades and the youngsters can learn a lot from him,” said Jude, a midfielder of great capability for HAL, Karnataka and India before he decided to move base to Singapore.
“All the teams are good and I am sure we are going to have an exciting WSH tournament,” Jude said.