Hockey - really ?

The country is stuck. It will be so appropriate to call cricket our national sport. So appropriate! It is a sport played by all sections and all regions. It is game liked by young and old. A game that incites so much passion that hearts fail in sorrow and shock at games lost. Isnt that what a national game should be all about? Who crowned hockey as the national sport anyway? Why did we choose it in the first place? Does half of the nation even know of the sport? Maybe they have heard of the name but have they any idea of the way it is played ? Forget kids! Do you know about something known as the Astro Turf? Do you know of any players that played for our country other than Dhyanchand ?

I am sure that there will be many who do know this sport and those who fondly follow the matches. However, if it is a sport not appreciated by the masses, then its designation as a 'national sport' is worth reconsidering. I can speculate that we chose Hockey since it was probably one of the only sports that we were good at that time. Further, it was a sport that did not require too much of expensive equipment like the other contender sports such as Cricket. But the story has changed. With the new rules in place, hockey requires much more investment than many other sports. The normal ground has been replaced by a much more expensive 'Astroturf'. The equipment, the apparel and the gear used by competitive teams is much more specialized and effective. The level of specialized training required is an added expense. Under these conditions, we cannot argue in favor of it in monetary terms. Even in terms of our reputation, we dont have any standing in this sport worldwide. We are a persistent breed of people and I am sure we will improve with time, but by the time we actually rise to that level we will have to face the ignominy of dismal performances in our 'national sport'.