Double blow for Pillay

New Delhi: Ace striker Dhanraj Pillay’s hopes of playing in the Olympics suffered a jolt on Sunday with the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) virtually ruling him out of the mega event at Athens in August. Pillay was not picked in an 18-member ‘experimental’ side to play in a four-nation tournament in Japan, starting on May 13, and was not called to join a fitness camp for 12 other players at Barog.

IHF chief K. P. S. Gill said the probables for Olympics would be picked from these 30 players but added that one or two players could be considered from outside this pool of 30.

“We would see the performance of the boys in Japan and after that we will see who would join the camp. We may consider making some changes and include one or two more players from outside the 30,” Gill said.

Gill also said that the team for the Olympics would be announced sometime in July after a four-nation tournament in Holland. Gill did not give any direct reply when asked about Pillay’s chances of making it to the squad for the Olympics. “We can only take 16 players to Olympics. So we have to ensure that the ones who have the potential to play the entire duration of 70 minutes of tough games under extreme pressure are selected,” he said.

Two more senior players, Baljit Singh Dhillon and Baljit Singh Saini, also found themselves excluded from the pool of 30.

IHF’s policy of playing musical chair in team selection has seen the performance of the side dipping — a sharp contrast to last year when a balanced side had fetched the country wins in important international meets including the Asia Cup.

But Gill was unfazed by the recent poor performances. “In the past when we played well in one tournament, in the next tournament it was just the opposite. So don’t read too much into this,” he said. The eight-time Olympic champions will play a four-nation tournament in Holland from June 25 to July 5. They may also go to Germany for a similar meet and a training programme. “We are looking for a place in Germany where our team can stay and continue training. The German hockey federation has also proposed a four-nation tournament but that has not been finalised yet,” Gill said.

Besides the hosts and India, the Holland meet features Germany and Pakistan. If the event in Germany takes place, then apart from the hosts, England and France would be India’s opponents. A 16-member team alongwith eight stand-bys will be picked for the Olympics after the Holland meet.

The experimental side, announced by Gill, leaves for Japan on May 12 and would play matches against Korea and China besides the hosts. Gill also outrigh tly denied that any player had tested positive to a banned drug.

Tejbir Singh, who was sent back home before the start of the Olympic qualifiers in Madrid last month, had said he was informed by the coach that he had tested positive for a banned drug and could not take part in the event.

But on Sunday, when asked about the Tejbir episode, Gill said: “No player has ever been found using performance-enhancing drugs. Gill also insisted that Tejbir had never spoken to anyone in the media on the issue. “I had a discussion with Tejbir and he said he hasn’t spoken to the media.” Tejbir has neither been picked for the tournament in Japan nor the Barog camp.

Pillay refuses to comment

An angry Pillay said he did not want to comment on his controversial omission. “I don’t want to talk about it. Whatever you have to ask you must ask the Indian Hockey Federation,” Pillay said over phone from Mumbai.

“I know what happened there (in the press conference). I don’t want to comment on it.”

(PTI)