HI’s appointment of coach Marijne defies logic

WHILE THE APPOINTMENT, COMING DAYS AFTER IT WAS ANNOUNCED THAT APPLICATIONS HAVE BEEN INVITED FOR THE POST OF THE MEN’S COACH LEAVES A LOT OF GREY, THE LOGIC BEHIND SJOERD’S SELECTION IS QUESTIONABLE.

future is jaded, then why hire Sjoerd, whose track record has been not that spectacular, either.

Appointing Harendra Singh to guide the women, with a very fancy designation that too, at first glance, seems like a positive move. It may indeed prove good in the long run.

However, if Hockey India was not exactly waiting for applications from the ‘best in the world’ (like they had claimed after sacking Oltmans), and was going to appoint someone from its immediate, dwindling pool of coaching resources, then Harendra would have been a better choice for the men’s team.

After all, he was the coach who led the junior boys to the world title last year.

And his rapport and understanding of the young crop of talented players would have come in handy for the senior team which will soon hit a period of transition, where juniors need to be blended in to build a squad for the future.

Besides, with Harendra, there would not have been a language barrier, a problem all foreign coaches have with Indian teams, across sports.

Instead, Harendra has been given a fresh slate, and a daunting task of planning and building. On the other side of the fence, planning and building seems to be a distant dream for the Indian men’s hockey team, which, in the last four years or so, had seen a mini resurgence.

But Hockey India’s lack of vision, and questionable decisions, seems to have dragged things back to square one.