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Old hands wave goodbye the same story like the Netherlands

2012-02-01 07:02:00

Minutes after being named as a stand-by for the upcoming hockey Olympic qualifiers, veteran mid-fielder Arjun Halappa distanced himself from the national team. As he left for his home, Halappa was more hurt than disappointed.

“I am yet to talk to my family. I will go back and then officially announce my retirement from international hockey in a few days. I don’t have anything to prove to anyone and I think it is better to go on my own before I am dumped,” Halappa told The Indian Express.

Having made his international debut in 2001 at the Prime Minister’s Gold Cup in Dhaka, Halappa has been the fulcrum of the Indian team ever since. Even in the recent five-match series against South Africa, used as selection trials for the squad, the 31-year-old stood out with his playmaking and was largely responsible for India’s fluent attack.

The selection committee, though, seems to have decided otherwise. “If the federation thinks youth is the way forward, fine. But if performance is the criteria, then I don’t wish to say anything, my game was there for everyone to see. If they had dropped me saying someone else was better, it would still have been fine, at least they would have been honest. But after 11 years of international hockey, I don’t think I deserve to be on stand-by list. Either I am good enough for the team or I am not. I am not a newcomer anymore to await a chance at someone else’s expense,” he added.

Source: Indianexpress