'Maradona of Hockey' Shahbaz Ahmed feels the pain of Pakistan's downfall

Pakistan, the most successful team in the history of the Hockey World Cup, are conspicuously absent even as the 2023 edition kicked off in Odisha on Friday. Though Pakistan won the title the last time 29 years ago, no team has been able to match their four title wins even today.

The captain of Pakistan's last WC-winning team, Shahbaz Ahmed, popularly known as the 'Maradona of Hockey' in the 1990s, can now only look on helplessly as the 16 best teams in the world - which do not include the traditional heavyweights - cross sticks over the next few days.

"The amount of pride and happiness I felt while listening to our national anthem after winning the 1994 World Cup... the same amount of pain I feel now looking at the condition of Hockey in Pakistan," said Shahbaz Sr with a tangible pain in his voice.

The longest-serving captain of Pakistan, Shahbaz had been admired by fans and opposition alike in his heyday, when Pakistan had held the Asian flag aloft at a time when European nations were tilting the balance of power in the sport.

Coming at a time when Argentine Diego Maradona had the world at his feet in the football arena, Shahbaz Ahmed's run against Australia in the 1994 World Cup is immortalised as one of the best moments in over a century of hockey history. His performances in the '90 and the '94 WCs will remain etched forever in history books.

"I kept myself fit and agile to reach a certain level of fitness which complimented my performance on the field. My ability to beat players with my ball control and body dodges came from supreme fitness," the Pakistan legend said.

Pakistan's Glorious Days in Hockey

Talking about their last World Cup win, the former captain said, "We were told, 'Ye toh world cup kya, chai ka cup bhi jeet ke nahi aayenge (These guys won't even win a cup of tea).' I remember when we left for the 1994 World Cup, nobody gave us any chance despite us being the previous runners-up."

In the 1990 Hockey World Cup, where Pakistan had lost to the Netherlands in the final on their home ground, Shahbaz had been adjudged the best player.

"I think beating Australia in the pool match defined our course. The win united our boys and as a captain, my focus was to build on a good start. I kept the team united and the motivation to win the World Cup for the country kept the morale high," the legend explained Pakistan's mantra of success four years after that.

In the pool game, he spoke about, Shahbaz Ahmed's run, with Australian defender Ken Wark chasing him and the body feints to continue the run is a visual image stamped in every hockey fan's memory.

In the final, Pakistan faced their familiar foe, the Netherlands. It was not just a final but also revenge for the Pakistani team who had been beaten in front of a 60,000-strong home crowd four years earlier.

What followed - Shahbaz displaying his full range of skills from dribbling, body dodges, stick work and ball control, and the likes of goalkeeper Mansoor and Tahir Zaman complementing him - had hardly been witnessed before.

The Road to Greatness for Maradona of Hockey

At the time, Shahbaz Ahmed was the best player in the world by miles. He won the man of the tournament awards in both the 1990 and 1994 World Cups and was also the best player when Pakistan grabbed a bronze medal in the 1992 Olympics.

With his trademark dribbling skills and cross-field runs, Shahbaz possessed the rare ability to produce magic when least expected. As mentioned by multiple hockey fans, he was an artist on the field with his body feints and incredible passes. His stick work is regarded as one of the greatest in the world.

What pushed him one notch above the others was his discipline and mentality.

"I have lived hockey for the majority of my life. On the grass, I would beat 7-8 players easily during my young days. When I started hockey, I had this hunger to be the best in the world like my countrymen such as Hasan Sardar and Kaleemullah," quipped an excited Shahbaz Senior.

"I wanted to be the best in the world. My hunger kept growing as I played more. I would wake up at the designated time and sleep at the same. I would always study the game. The tactical nuances, smartness and understanding of how the game flows made my game stronger," he said further.

Testament to how he did become the best in the world, former Indian captain Dhanraj Pillay had once said: "If I had Shahbaz Ahmed in my team, we would have ruled the world together."

The sorry state of Hockey in Pakistan

The dream of a combined rule over the world by India and Pakistan has grown more distant as the years have passed. Even though India has recovered momentum in recent years, Pakistan has fallen further and further from their glory days.

One of the telling blows came last year when Pakistan failed to qualify for the 2023 Hockey World Cup after missing out on a semi-final spot in Asia Cup 2022.

"It pains me a lot. As someone who has seen the best, the sorry state of Pakistan hockey is beyond my understanding. The players are not playing the hockey required at the international level. When they have to pass, they dodge the ball and their quality is not improving," Shahbaz said with disappointment.

Pakistan Hockey is plagued with multiple reasons. Corruption at the top brass, no proper hockey system and zero awareness about the sport are some major reasons.

"Hockey and the people running it are responsible for the downfall. If there are no incentives, why will any player play? The youngsters will come towards the sport when you give them incentive and security to play," Shahbaz said.

Talking more about the reasons why Pakistan suffered, he said, "Departmental hockey was the soul of Pakistan hockey. Whenever a youngster will perform well, the departments will hire them and give them the security to play the game. The departments were closed without any alternative, this led to the slow death of the game."

Pakistan's departmental teams, formerly of international standards, have fallen by the wayside with the closure of the governmental departments. The recent low came when the national coach of Pakistan, Seigfried Aikman, left the team due to non-payment of dues.

"The people running Hockey should learn from countries like Netherlands, Belgium and Australia. Even India brought the whole Australian coaching staff but Pakistan hired a coach from the Netherlands who will never get to coach the senior sides of his own country," Shabaz said.

It is sad for the world of Hockey that one of the most glorious nations in the history of sport has faded away.

"I wish there could be more India and Pakistan matches which will create heroes on both sides. Setting up high-performance academies, making hockey more organised and providing incentives to the players who play the game are some of the ways to revive the game in Pakistan. Or else I don't have many hopes," concluded Shahbaz Ahmed.