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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s squash circles were shocked to witness the national team meekly bow down at the recently concluded Senior Asian Championships in Korea.
The extraordinary hype of the Cricket World Cup put the squash debacle in the background. Now that the World Cup is over, fans of the game are beginning to question one of the worst ever performances by the national team at the Asian level.
The former world champion was defeated by Kuwait and India. Some members of the Indian and Kuwaiti teams who did not have international credentials looked very strong to the Pakistani players.
The Pakistani players failed to even win a single match against the Indians. To the surprise of many, even a small nation like Kuwait, where the game of squash had yet to take root, looked formidable against the former world champions.
Defeats meant Pakistan failed to reach the knockout stages and finished in fifth place.
This worst showing ever at an Asian major squash championships came on the heels of a poor showing by the Pakistani players at CAS International where none of the locals reached the semi-finals. There was a clear difference between the level displayed by the Egyptians who ran away with all the honors at the event and the local players.
The two defeats in a row were supposed to come as an opening for policy makers who dreamed of raising a world champion in two years.
Pakistani squash seems far from reaching a position where it can threaten game powerhouses like Egypt and England. Even catching up with Asian countries such as Hong Kong, India and Malaysia seems a long way off. The constant slippage is not without reasons.
Those who deal with administrative and technical affairs in the offices of the Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) are not able to provide and do not seem interested in contributing to the cause. These officials are often seen blaming the players and their parents.
We have some of the best guys. During the grooming process they lose their way. Coaches have no sense of modern training nor are administrators equipped enough to recognize flaws and shortcomings.
Our team has never looked so pedestrian as in Korea.
When Wing Cdr Saud who managed the team in Korea was contacted, at first he was reluctant to talk and then said that the federation was about to make some decisions. I am not in a position to share decisions. There are some things to come after the investigation conducted by the relevant officials. I hope things will improve in time.
These are words that everyone has been listening to for years and years now but the standard has dropped dramatically over the past few years. One wonders when people with decision-making powers realize that those who are tasked with managing and coaching teams are underachievers.
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