Jose Brasa

New Delhi: Hockey India (HI) president A.K. Mattoo Friday caused further embarrassment to Spanish coach Jose Brasa when he declared that Sandeep Singh would be fit to take part in the Champions Challenge League in Argentina next month.

Talking to media during the Presenting Partner agreement-signing function between Steel Authority of India Limited (Sail) and the International Hockey Federation (FIH), Mattoo said he was confident Sandeep would also play in the World Cup, in Delhi next year.

Asked specifically whether the ace drag flicker would recover from his injury to make the tour of Argentina, Mattoo said: “I am sure he will be there in the team to play the Champions Challenge. Sandeep had a back injury and he had to come out of it.”

Earlier this week, Brasa had said that Sandeep would be out of the Champions Challenge tournament with a back injury picked up during the seven-match tour of Canada. He even went to the extent of appointing Rajpal Singh as the new captain.

Some players, allegedly led by Sandeep, did not like the decision and decided to stay away from the national camp in Pune. Mattoo had to rush to Pune to hold a meeting with the players, the coach and the support staff.

Denying that Rajpal had been already appointed captain, Mattoo said the name of the captain would be declared in the next few days.

FIH president Leandro Negre, who was present at the function, has meanwhile said that HI had been given time till the end of January to hold the elections. “Holding elections to the HI is a vast process. So we agreed when asked for some more time,” Negre said.

Negre also ruled out the possibility of meeting the Bengal Hockey Association (BHA) president J.B. Roy-led warring group on the present visit.

“I already met them before and heard their grievances,” he said.

Meanwhile, the presenting partner status for Sail means that the World Cup in Delhi would now be referred to as the ‘Hero Honda FIH World Cup, presented by Sail’.