The Hindu : Sport / Hockey : Rajinder Jr. lashes out at IHF

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Apr 14, 2006

Sport

Sport - Hockey

Rajinder Jr. lashes out at IHF

Jalandhar: Rajinder Singh (Jr.), who was recently sacked as national coach, on Thursday lashed out at the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) saying that the team performance during his stint was hampered by constant chopping of players.

"Players were included one day and excluded the next day without any reasons. So, I reaped the harvest which others had sown. Still, I worked with dedication and was able to get the best out of the team,'' Rajinder, who remained as coach from May last year to March 30 this year, told UNI.

``I had worked sincerely during my stint with the Indian hockey team as the chief coach and achieved some degree of success despite facing numerous problems,'' Rajinder said.

Hard work

He said despite being bogged down by a number of problems, he kept on working hard and as a result was able to reduce the margin of defeat against the European teams.

``All the matches India lost against Australia, Holland, Spain and Germany were very closely-fought affairs and the margin of defeat was very narrow,'' he added.

Rajinder said his team won the three-match series against Pakistan on their home soil with two draws and one win.

``This was the first time that India defeated Pakistan in Pakistan after it (Pakistan) had won the Indian leg,'' he added.

On Tirkey's selection

However, Rajinder looked deeply hurt with the composition of the team for the four-nation meet. "Dilip Tirkey, who was on the injured list till Wednesday, got fit which is surprising. I am not against his inclusion in the team. I want to know the procedure adopted while recalling Tirkey who did not even attend the coaching camp in Gurgaon,'' explained Rajinder.

Rajinder also ruled out taking the coaching job with the Indian team in future if offered.

He also suggested that India should play at least 30 to 35 international matches in one year against Australia, Holland, Germany and Spain. ``Competing with European teams will raise India's standard. Playing against Pakistan will be beneficial in improving the skills. However, to be among the first four teams in the world regular Tests against European countries are a must,'' he suggested. — UNI

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