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Home , Dhanraj Pillay, Dilip Tirkey

INTERVIEW/ 'Playing in the German league has improved my fitness level'

NANDAKUMAR MARAR

HANRAJ PILLAY is back in tions. news now, leading to more peo- Mumbai after a short stint The former skipper, ple following the Indian team and with Stuttgart Kickers in the employed with Mahindras in the expectations are high. Are German first division hockey Mumbai, played four matches for you ready to live up to that? league, fitter and wiser after the Stuttgart Kickers in the second The awareness about hock- experience. He is particularly leg of the eight-team German ey has increased. On the flight impressed by the way the league. The quarterfinal phase back from Frankfurt, many peo- Germans go about their business commences in October after the ple came to me and talked about of preparing for the Sydney Sydney Olympics, when he will their expectations from the Olympic Games under coach go back to Germany. He admits Indian hockey team. They Paul Lissek. that the German experience seemed to have lost interest in "Paul Lissek is a travelling forced him to change his per- cricket due to the problems the coach. He collects a group of four spective about hockey. game is facing now. Everything players in a particular city - "I was heavily marked, some- is available on the Internet about Frankfurt. Munich or Berlin - times by two defenders, right hockey and other sports, so peo- based on their proximity and through the match. Scoring goals ple are aware of what is works for a week on honing their was difficult in the centre-for- happening. The Asian Games skills. The four players chosen ward position, though I managed gold at Bangkok followed by the are specialists in a specific aspect to score seven in 11 games, over victory in the four-nation tour- of the game - goalkeepers, two legs. I was told by the coach ney at Perth has given us the defenders or penalty corner hit- to play deep, drawing my mark- ters/pushers. He concentrates on ers out of their normal defensive fine-tuning them at the centre," positions, and focus on creating said the 2 9-year-old Indian inter- goals for the other forwards," national, who has been chosen observed the Indian spearhead. for the The list of Khel Ratna award. "Lissek works on tech- awardees includes some of the nique and strategy with every giants of Indian sport. Pillay who group of four. The players are is the first hockey player to be expected to look after their own bestowed with the honour spoke fitness which is tested before a to The Sportstar. Excerpts: major competition." Question: Do you think you Pillay feels that this is a train- have done enough for the coun- ing approach which India too try to deserve the honour, or is can adopt. "Our coach can go to there more to come? a place where any national-lev- Answer: I think I am the right el tournament is going on and person to get the Rajiv Gandhi work with groups instead of Khel Ratna award. I was expect- expecting him to pay equal atten- ing it last year after we won the tion to every international at one Bangkok Asian Games hockey centre, as is happening now," gold, but it has come this year. he said. Whatever I did for my country, The Indian Olympic proba- it has given me back in the form bles are now assembled in of this honour. Bangalore under coach Skipper Ramandeep Singh has Vasudevan Baskaran for the last been chosen for the Arjuna stage of their Sydney prepara- award. Indian hockey is in the

Hie Sportstar July 22,2000 confidence to face up to the chal- without any problem. Football clubs. My role was to adjust to lenge at Sydney. The Olympics is was part of our training sessions the situation. Since I was marked a different ball-game, but we are on non-match days. Having heavily, my coach expected me capable of doing well. played the sport in my early days, to draw the rival defenders and Do you think Indian men's in Pune, I enjoyed the opportu- feed balls to other Stuttgart strik- hockey has made significant nity to show them my speed with ers. I enjoyed the feeding role, strides in the last two years? the ball. I didn't do any tackling but the young players in the team We have three months of though. did not know how to exploit the hard work ahead. We have to Germany has a rich hockey defenders' attention on me. I work on penalty corners, both tradition but is going through think they will get used to it by conversion and defence. We have difficult times. Is it a passing the time the German league to play according to the situa- phase or a sign of the times? resumes in October. If any Indian tion, plan match-to-match and A sign of the times... Holland was playing along side, he would work step by step. If we do the and Australia who have realised have been far more successful in homework here, then I am con- the need to mix speed and fit- scoring goals. fident that the team can face ness with Asian skills, are ahead You will be a marked man any kind of opposition at the of Germany, which will be again at Sydney because of your Olympics. depending only on experienced reputation as a striker. Will you The stint in the German first players at Sydney. No young tal- be willing to play a similar feed- division league is a new experi- ent is coming through in time er role and let the other Indians ence for you. Are you a different for the Olympics. It will take some do the scoring? player from the one who played time for Germany to get out of Of course. If I am not able for India at Perth? this phase because everywhere to score, I will only be more hap- Fitness-wise, yes. Playing the same European style of hit- py creating chances for others, competitive hockey in Germany and-run hockey is played. From who can score goals easily. has improved my fitness level. the national team down to the Fortunately we have strikers in They do a lot of endurance work club-level, everyone plays the Mukesh Kumar, Sameer Dad and there. Before I joined Stuttgart same type of game. who know what Kickers, I was put through a Club hockey is a professional to do in the event of 'Pillay' being range of fitness tests, especially sport in Germany. Our players marked. to ascertain the strength of my are employed...salaried class. Any comparison to Jagbir back and legs and I got through Apart from this basic difference, Singh, the first Indian star to play how is the system in Bundesliga for Stuttgart Kickers? Do you feel different from ours? any of the Indian internation- Germany has a club-league, als can survive a season in the just like our Nationals, but it is German first division, consider- played on a format similar to ing the standards prevailing our National Football League. there? The Super Division has eight Jagbir Singh is quite popular teams and the games are held there. However, he was more a on a home-and-away basis. We skillful player who operated in have company teams, they have the goalmouth. My job was to clubs sponsored by companies. run up and down the flanks, draw For example, Audi is associated markers out and create passes. with Stuttgart Kickers which also As for the current Indians sur- has Brueninger, one of the viving a season in Germany, I feel biggest shopping malls, as a any of our world-class players - major sponsor. The club players Mukesh, Sabu Varkey, Mohd Riaz, are mainly students who play the and Baljit Dhillon - game, others hold regular office can do well provided they get jobs. There are no hockey pro- used to the conditions, overcome fessionals. the language and food problems, Is any other Asian player the coach's instructions to a involved in the German league? group which are in German. I What was your role at Stuttgart? felt lonely and bored, but now cUrJ I don't know of any other feel at home. Basically, my expe- Q rience in the English (Indian LU -Asians playing there, though CO Australians and Dutch interna- Gymkhana Club) and French (FC LU > tionals are attached to German Lyon) leagues also helped. >

July 22,2000 TheSportSti