Indian Cricket Team

But even then, he continues to follow Indian hockey closely and bats for the team every time it hits the turf. The 70-year-old, who shuttles between Perth and ...

He was then the coach of the cricket team and I remember Chappell saying that if India gets their act together in cricket, they will have the five best teams in the world. That’s part of the stepping stone that you have to put in place if you’re going to build a solid programme. So, I think that all of those people have played a part in developing the programme. And if you win a semifinal and you’re in the main game, that has to be their aim at every tournament now on. They still don’t have the whole package, but their game has made a lot of progress in the last decade. Maybe, it’s the resilience in that sort of situation where a couple of goals can hurt. I went there for the first time in the 1970s and it’s a different place now. But I felt that Indian hockey of course has the numbers, resources, the skilful players and all the ingredients that you need. In the 1930s, 1940s or 1950s, India were the innovators of the game, but I think they got complacent. They have been interested in various sports and there is no doubt that the variety of sports that you play and the skills that you learn when you are young eventually help you improve your hand-to-eye coordination. Maybe, in the next 10 years, you will see them not on the podium, but at the top of the podium, in major competitions. But when it comes to hockey, he is still a keen observer of the game.