Hockey legends slam saffron jersey, say blue is India’s identity

New Delhi, Jul 30 (PTI) Former India captain Pargat Singh on Thursday questioned the decision to make saffron the Indian hockey team's primary jersey colour ahead of the upcoming World Cup, alleging that "everything in the country is being saffronised", while legendary forward Dhanraj Pillay said the blue jersey has been the sport's identity for decades.

The controversy erupted after Hockey India unveiled saffron as the primary jersey for the men's and women's teams for the World Cup, beginning August 15 in the Netherlands and Belgium.

While former India captain Viren Rasquinha has also expressed reservations over the move, Hockey India has maintained that the decision was taken considering both the technical feedback received from the coaches and players and the symbolic value associated with the colour being part of the National Flag.

Dhanraj, who represented India in 339 international matches, including four Olympics, four World Cups and four Champions Trophy tournaments, said the blue jersey has remained synonymous with Indian hockey for generations.

"The blue jersey has become the identity of Indian hockey. Being one of the colours of our national flag, saffron is important and auspicious but it has never been the traditional colour of Indian hockey. I don't understand why this has suddenly changed after so many years," Dhanraj told PTI.

"From the 1928 Olympic team to the eras of Dhyan Chand, Balbir Singh Sr., Mohammad Shahid, Zafar Iqbal and even the 1980 Moscow Olympic gold medal-winning side, everyone played in the blue jersey. I played for nearly 15 years and throughout my career our jersey remained blue." He said players associate themselves with the traditional colours of the national team.

"This is not a franchise tournament like the IPL or Hockey India League where teams wear different colours. The Indian team's identity has always been the blue jersey," he said.

Recalling the only exception he remembered, Dhanraj said India wore a yellow shirt with blue shorts in one match against Argentina during the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.

Rejecting the argument that the change was necessitated due to blue astro turf, he said, "The team has been playing on blue turf for several years and I have never seen any problem because of the jersey colour. Is there any direction from the FIH regarding a blue jersey creating difficulties?" Pargat, one of India's greatest defenders who later entered politics and is currently a Congress MLA in Punjab, was more critical of the decision.

"Everything in the country is being saffronised – education, history and now sports too. This is worrying. Sports unite people and rise above religion, caste and politics. It is unfortunate if such thinking enters sports as well," he said.

He also rejected Hockey India's explanation that the move was aimed at improving visibility on blue turf.

"I have never experienced any such issue. Even if visibility was a concern, why choose only this colour? Were there no other options?" he asked.

Pargat also dismissed the contention that the decision was based on feedback from players and coaches.

"Players and coaches do not normally make such recommendations. The FIH already has our jersey colours registered. The Indian hockey team's identity has always been the blue jersey," he said.

He pointed out that generations of Indian players, from the country's greatest legends to the current stars, have represented the nation in blue.

"In every iconic photograph of Indian hockey, our players are seen wearing blue. Even during our playing days we trained in blue. It has become the identity of Indian hockey," he said.

Pargat added that while India traditionally had a white change kit, the saffron jersey has now been registered as the primary strip.

"I don't see any logic behind this decision," he said. PTI