30 April,2009 08:08 AM IST | | Ashwin Ferro
Army XI lift Gold Cup hockey thanks to Mahadik the team's skipper, trainer, coach and video analyst all in one. Heard that, John Buchanan?
Try telling Army XI skipper Dhananjay Mahadik about IPL team Kolkata Knight Riders' strategy of multiple captains and he has a hearty laugh. Because leave alone multiple captains, the army's hockey outfit doesn't even have a designated coach.
"It's not that we are an ignored bunch but we have different officers, who are in-charge of the fitness and other physical activities of the team. But there is no fixed coach as such," Mahadik, told MiD DAY after he scored the all-important winner off a drag-flick against Air-India in the dying moments of the Gold Cup final at the MHA-Mahindra Stadium yesterday to ensure his team retained the trophy and were richer by Rs 1,25,000.
Gopal Chand is the only traveling official with the team and on paper, his designation is that of a manager, with the coach's slot being left vacant in the line-up. In such a scenario, it is Mahadik who shoulders the multiple burden. "I supervise the daily practice of the team. Most of our boys are from an adivasi background so it's not tough to stretch them during training as they are used to doing the hard yards," said Mahadik, who was seen shouting instructions from the midfield and literally marshalling his troops for the entire 70 minutes of the match against a formidable Air-India line-up.
Pillay's praise
The 25-year-old hawaldar is also technically very sound. "I record and then replay videos of our opponents, which the team closely watch before crucial matches. This helps analyse each player of the rival team," explained the 25-year-old, who also earned special kudos from four-time Olympian and key member in yesterday's opposition camp, Dhanraj Pillay. "Very few young players work as hard as Mahadik. He does training, video-analysis, coaching... basically everything for the team. It's because of his efforts that the team has done well," said Pillay, whose team had to be content with the runner-up award of Rs 75,000.
Mahadik was delighted his team could pull off the win in front of a distinguished superior General RK Hooda, commanding officer for Maharashtra, Goa and Gujarat, who was chief guest of the day. "Generalsaheb has promised to make tracksuits for each one of us as an incentive for winning this title. It's a very encouraging gesture," said Mahadik as he rated the boss' gift much higher than the Rs 10,000 he took home as Player of the Tournament.
