Memories in tow, Sardar returns to National Stadium

Published>Sat, Mar 06 10 05:43 AM

Ii used to be a strange relationship between Hassan Sardar and India. The centre-forward loved to visit the country but the Indians always dreaded it. One of the finest players of all times, Sardar guided Pakistan to a memorable double on this side of the border: the 1982 World Cup title in Mumbai and the Asian Games gold that very year, which included a 7-1 victory over India in the final at the National Stadium.

"Every time I come to this stadium, the memories of that (7-1) win fill my mind," said Sardar, who was here on Thursday. "It was a wonderfully organised tournament. A great game. We scored a lot of goals, but India failed to get their name against the goal despite playing attacking hockey.

"Shahid Ali Khan (current coach) was our goalkeeper in the final and was named the man of the match. It shows that it was an open game and India also attacked a lot, but they were unlucky."

None more than Mir Ranjan Negi, the Indian goalie. Sardar's hattrick in the match not only shattered India's medal hopes, it ruined Negi's career.

"Even when two brothers play together, one of them will lose a game. Even the greatest of players has at least one bad day in their career and that was Negi's bad day. He might have committed a lot of mistakes that day, but one should also remember the number of matches that India won relying on his talent," Sardar said.

Now the head of Pakistan's selection committee, Sardar's latest visit, however, hasn't been a pleasant one. The team lost to India in the opening game and another defeat against England has dealt a severe blow to their semi-final chances. "Pakistan is not giving the kind of results that are expected of them in this World Cup, especially the forward-line. Sohail Abbas hasn't been up to the mark. We had recalled him for his drag-flick skills, but as I understand it, the other teams have been able to read him. They must have seen a lot of videos before the World Cup. His form would have made a difference to Pakistan's form," he said.

Source: Web Search