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The Rediff Interview/ Vasudevan Bhaskaran

'I want players who can play eight games consistently'

India hockey coach Vasudevan Bhaskaran has argued for a longer term for the national coach, saying "it would enable him to understand the players and create a team".

Citing Australia's example, he said: "Terry Walsh has been the coach for the past six years and will be there till 2002."

Bhaskaran spoke to UNI after the recent, disastrous tour of South Africa. Among other things, he disclosed that he will stay on as national coach till the Sydney Olympics.

So, the tour of South Africa has been a disaster. Were there any lessons learnt from it?

I wouldn't use the word disaster. The fact is, and I can't do anything about it, that we lost. But I always will look for gains. Nor that I didn't expect them too. But our forwards were exposed to hard hockey for the first time. Players like Deepak Thakur took a little time to settle down. These boys need to learn how to hold the ball for the entire game, play hard for the entire game, and I am confident that they will eventually learn to do that. As a matter of fact, I think we should have won three out of five games. But it was a good tour; a learning tour.

Most of the press reports reaching India said the umpiring was biased and the South Africans were hell-bent on winning, even if it meant twisting the umpiring to suit the home team. Was that true?

I really don't want to comment on the umpiring. But yes, we were taken aback by some of the decisions. I am not the sort who would cry over umpiring, but I think we should look at neutral umpires in future. At one of the parties that were held in honour of both teams, a South African official was heard saying that to boost the morale of the SA team for the African Games and qualification for the Olympics, the team was made to win with some decisions favouring the hosts. But I think we should just leave it at that; we have lost and we need to review the situation and move on.

There has been a lot of controversy over the dropping of the 'six' players responsible for winning the Asian Games gold after 32 years. After the South African tour do you feel that some of those players should be included?

I give credit to the Asian Games team and the coach who went with them. They had a good tournament and it was a proud moment. But I don't know what happened after the Asian Games. It's the job of the Indian Hockey Federation to find that out. But I have been told to rebuild and that is what I am doing.

Some of these boys (Dhanraj Pillay, Ashish Ballal, A B Subaiah, Sandeep Somesh, Sabu Varkey and Mukesh Kumar) have had problems with the federation on tours. Right now, more than deciding who will play and who will not, I want players who can play eight games consistently for the country.
Even in the 1998 World Cup, I had to carry two players (Rajiv Mishra and Dhanraj Pillay) who were injured and then we know what happened.

What do you mean by that you had to carry?

The doctor told us that by the time the World Cup begins, these boys will be fit and raring to go. But in the World Cup, they couldn't play. Rajiv failed the fitness test in Utrecht, while Dhanraj was a mere passenger. Sometimes one has to believe the doctor.

Given a chance to select the team, would you pick any player from the bunch that was dropped after the Asian Games?

We have to move on and not stick with what has happened. I know that the IHF has spoken to Mukesh Kumar and Dhanraj Pillay, and looking at their fitness they will be included in the side. Both are nippy forwards but let's see what happens. We still have a year to go for the Games.

Since Mr K P S Gill became IHF president in July 1994, nine coaches have been changed. Even you were dropped after the 1998 World Cup. Aren't you afraid that the IHF might even drop you before the Olympics? Isn't that extra pressure that you could do without?

I don't think so. But I have always wanted continuity. The world over coaches have been there for more than six years. Look at Terry Walsh of Australia. He will be the coach till 2002, while Paul Lissek has been there for more than six years. So in that sense, I do agree that even we should give the coach a chance to understand the players and create a team.

We all make mistakes and we all learn. But we need time to learn from the mistakes. I have been told that I will be the national coach till the Sydney 2000 Olympics. So I think that is a step in the right direction.

The goalkeeping issue has snowballed into a major controversy... the IHF says that Ashish Ballal is over the hill, yet it selects a goalkeeper (Aloysius Edwards), who is older than Ballal. What are your views?

For the media to concentrate on what one player says is a bit silly. Ballal did a great job in Bangkok to win us the gold. But it's a law that you have a carry on. Even after the 1980 Moscow Olympics, where I was the gold medal-winning captain, I was dropped from the team. But I didn't start screaming. Players like him should look to contributing positively; not just criticise. Ballal is the same player who in 1996 said ''Balls to hockey". So Ballal himself is not all that sugary-sweet. He should remember it is the same federation which gave him the Arjuna Award. You just can't be discouraging all the time.

You took the team to the junior World Cup final in 1997 and then had a disastrous World Cup with the senior team in 1998. There have been ups and downs. Have you matured as a coach now?

Yes, I think so. Even as a player I had my ups and downs. That doesn't bother me. I always give 100 per cent as a coach. I was the coach when the team beat Germany to win the Azlan Shah tournament. It was the same team, but under a different coach, which won the SAF Games final.

If you go through the statistics, as coach for the junior and senior teams, I have been there for almost 60 matches. That is not a bad record. But yes, a big win has been elusive. Right now, I am confident that I am on the right track.

Looking at the defeats in South Africa, what are the prospects for the Sydney Olympics?

Let me make one thing very clear: I am not at all perturbed by the defeats in Johannesburg. The Olympics is a different ball game. In 1996, we had one bad game against Argentina and lost the semi-final slot. Even for fifth, sixth positions, we were leading with three goals against South Korea but lost the match. In 1992, we beat everybody in the world and yet we lost at the Olympics. So, in that sense, you really can't say anything. But yes, as a coach I am confident about my own abilities and know we will do well at Sydney.

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