It’s a Friday, there’s an international sports tournament on, and so India must be playing Pakistan. It’s the the most-awaited clash of the Champions Trophy and, even though India are down on their luck, there’s a buzz of expectation here. While the Indians will play for pride — and to avoid the embarrassment of being ‘relegated’ from the tournament — Pakistan, under their visionary young coach Tahir Zaman, have suddenly regained their form and have more to play for. INDIA VS PAKISTAN OVER THE YEARS Overall: M: 105; India: 34; Pakistan: 50; Draw: 21 Goals scored: India: 177. Pakistan: 233 Champions Trophy M: 10; India: 4; Pakistan 6; Goals scored: India 20; Germany 27 At Amstelveen M: 3; India: 3, Pakistan 0. Goals score: India: 10; Pakistan 6 (S Pervez Qaiser) They’ll both be playing for the fans, several hundred of whom have travelled from within and around Holland — Germany, Belgium, Switzerland. They’ve come because this is a match that traditionally offers something out of the ordinary — for example, Dhanraj Pillay’s goal at last year’s event in Cologne. But Dhanraj, and his teammates, have to fight their way out of the mental slump they are currently in. In any other situation, the Indian players would have been buzzing today; the prospect of playing Pakistan always does something to the adrenalin. Yet, there’s a metaphorical shrugging of the shoulders as if to say, We can’t figure out what’s wrong. ‘‘This is not an ideal situation for us’’, one player told this reporter. ‘‘We had planned to do well but there is no excitement left even to play Pakistan.’’ Chief coach Rajinder Singh echoed those words, saying, ‘‘It’s a chance for us to defend our reputation but I can’t see the sparkle in the players.’’ The perfect time for either Rajinder or Dhanraj to pull the team together with a few stirring words. However, it’s an open secret that captain and coach don’t get along. Basic man management will tell you — as former India star Jagbir Singh wrote in this paper this morning — that what is needed is for the players to be reassured that they are much better than they’ve played this past week. And, perhaps, given a chance to air their grievances, state the on-field problems they’ve been facing. The team’s usual schedule the day before a match comprises weight-training in the morning and match-training in the afternoon. However, there was no training of either sort today. Instead, the players opted for a city tour. That might actually be a good thing, a way of releasing tension, rather than staying in a hotel room. LAST FIVE MATCHES • June 2003 (Australia): India (3) bt Pak (2) • June 2003 (Australia): India (4) draw Pak (4) • Oct 2002 (Asiad): India (4) bt Pak (3) • Sept 2002 (Germany): India (3) lost to Pak (4) • Sept 2002 : (Germany): India (3) bt Pak (2) Out on the streets, they might have bumped into the fans. Arvind Bal, who’s travelled from Switzerland, said, ‘‘We were waiting for this match from a long time. But unfortunately the tournament has been bad for India. Now we are hoping that they will at least make up by beating Pakistan.’’ Indeed, watching an India-Pakistan encounter is a rare treat for fans outside India. This is the first time a hockey tournament is being shown by three television networks — TEN Sports, Euro Sports and Zee TV (in the US and Canada) — and tomorrow’s match is likely to be watched by a large number who’ve never seen India and Pakistan play each other.
