Pakistani stars playing in a new Indian field hockey league said Thursday their participation could help revive sporting links between the two countries. Five current and former Pakistan internationals, including ex-captain Zeeshan Ashraf, are in India for the lucrative but unsanctioned World Series Hockey (WSH) tournament which opened on Wednesday. “We are thrilled to be in India,” said Zeeshan, who is joined in the tournament by team-mates Adnan Maqsood, Rehan Butt, Shakeel Abbassi and Waseem Ahmed. “This is a great platform to forge friendship between India and Pakistan. I hope it will mark the start of sporting ties between the two countries.”
Bilateral series in cricket, the most popular sport in the sub-continent, have been stalled since a terrorist attack on Mumbai in November 2008, which India blamed on militants based in Pakistan. Pakistan last toured India for a cricket series in 2007, while India featured in the Asia Cup played across the border in early 2008. And no Pakistani has featured in the cash-rich Indian Premier League since the first edition in 2008. The Pakistanis have risked their careers to play in the WSH because it is not supported by the International Hockey Federation (FIH), which has threatened to bar players from world events.
The world governing body opposes the WSH, which with prize money of $3 million is one of the richest events in the sport, since it is backed by the rebel Indian Hockey Federation instead of the officially recognised Hockey India.
The Indian national squad, which qualified for the London Olympics last week, has chosen to stay away from the tournament fearing possible action by authorities. The tournament has also failed to attract top world stars, with former Australian captain Brent Livermore the best-known foreigner apart from the Pakistanis taking part.
