Hero Motocorp’s new ad “Phir Dil Do Hockey Ko” is one of the most inspiring ads of all time and it was attempted at motivating the youngsters from the country to come out in support of their national team vying to qualify for the Mother of all sporting events “The Olympics”. But hardly did that change anything and all the brains, money and effort of Hero went to the dogs as it could attract the crowd as they desired which is indeed very depressing.
Should India actually be playing the Qualifiers?
One of the reasons of the empty grounds might be the fact that many intellectual fans would know that playing qualifiers for a tournament we have won on 8 occasions is not something that should be so proudly promoted. It''s actually a shame that we have to play the qualifiers considering its our national game and we have been once a powerhouse of the sport.
But expecting too much knowledge from the fans could also be tricky. Take this for example: While I asked a colleague to accompany me for the game against Canada (India''s toughest game thus far), the colleague a self proclaimed hockey player in his college days replied "I would like to go for the semi-finals and the finals" and "When is the game against Pakistan that must be interesting isn''t it". I understood my course and moved ahead finding no reason to debate and enlighten.
So the point above could be laid to rest. Let''s look at important reasons as to why really the grounds might be empty. My first problem is promotion/hype generation. How much did HI, India''s governing body promote the tournament. Apart from the initiatives taken by Hero, I did not see much by HI. Not many Outdoor campaigns, not much in the malls, not many pre-tournament hype-generating activities. Frankly, had I been sitting at the helm of affairs of Indian hockey, I would have known that without these things the crowds would not turn-up. The problem is, do the men at the helm bother?
One look at a tournament like IPL and you will understand what I am trying to say. One-it is a cricket tournament, two-it features the best of international players and yet if you see the kind of promotion IPL does, you will understand the importance of pre-tournament hype-generation. Hockey in any case would need a lot more than cricket to get up and running in this country from its current dead and buried stage.
Pricing of tickets
The biggest shock that one receives when he/she reaches the ground is the pricing of tickets. Rs. 300 and Rs. 500 are the two ticket prices for the games. Yes, for this you are allowed to watch many games throughout the day but frankly who is interested in anything else than India games. And when most games are being played during office-hours how will people come. And then it is highly unlikely for anyone to pay such heft sum to watch a 70-minute affair between India and a third-world hockey nation at 8pm at night.
Did Hockey India do any surveys to come to this pricing? I am certain they did not. Had they done they would have known that Hockey needs to be rebuilt first to get such prices. They have to get in crowds from the younger generation. If they have to allow free access, so be it. The youth who has lost interest in the sport first needs to enjoy the game and understand the high-octane environment around the sport. Only then will he be interested further.
Conclusion
The result is that a well laid out Major Dhyan Chand Stadium lies fairly empty while Hockey India (the selection board for the Olympics team) seems unperturbed. It hardly matters to them whether someone comes to see the game or not. To hold such tournaments in itself is gratification enough for the babus and former players in there.
By Rohit Sakunia
