Hostile hockey

Pakistan’s qualification for the 2026 Men’s FIH Hockey World Cup has been thrown into peril due to reasons that have nothing to do with the team’s on-field performance. Insiders have reportedly revealed that the federal government is leaning towards barring the national team from participating in the upcoming Asia Cup Hockey Championship set to commence in Bihar, India, from August 29. In fact, the reports say that the decision not to send the national side has already been made ‘in principle’. This is a move apparently prompted by the anti-Pakistan fever that has gripped much of the Indian media, driving concerns about the safety of the national hockey team’s players should they visit the country. It was initially hoped that things would normalise and the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) was reportedly told to wait for this outcome, but, sadly, this has not been the case. The Indian X (Twitter) troll army has been quite vocal about the possibility of Pakistan’s hockey team attending the Asia Cup, claiming that Pakistan being allowed to attend would be an insult to the Indians who died in the clashes between the two countries back in April-May. This sort of jingoistic rhetoric has become the par-for-the-course in India these days and, in the PM Modi era, it has often led to real world violence.

In this context, the government’s concerns about the safety of Pakistan’s players are quite valid. Player safety should always be the top priority. Sadly, not sending players to the Asia Cup, a vital qualifying event for the 2026 world cup, might deal a serious blow to the already struggling national team’s standing and compromise qualification for the latter. In light of this dilemma, former Olym­p­ian and twice-elected pres­i­dent of the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF), Akhtar Rasool Chaudhary has reportedly suggested that the upcoming Asia Cup be moved to a neutral venue or that at least Pakistan’s matches be held in a neutral location. This is a very fair suggestion and, given that Chaudhary is currently an advisor to the Asian Hockey Federation (AHF), his words should carry weight in official circles. This would also be similar to the compromise that India arm-twisted Pakistan and the rest of the cricketing world into expecting during the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy earlier this year. India’s matches were played at a neutral venue in the UAE after it raised ‘security concerns’, an issue brought up by none of the other teams who were more than happy to play in Pakistan.

It is always a sad day when politics gets in the way of sports and especially when it dampens the prospects of teams and players through no fault of their own. However, India’s unreasonable hostility towards Pakistan in pretty much every setting has guaranteed that this trend will only continue. To make matters worse, Pakistan and India are almost fated to encounter each other in major tournaments as the two countries are neighbours and have enthusiasm for similar sports. While it would be fair for India to extend Pakistan the courtesy of a neutral venue for the Asia Cup Hockey Championship, it likely will not. India’s size and money give it a lot more clout in global sporting bodies in Pakistan and it likes to be the one doing the pushing around while not being pushed.