By Awais Saleem, IANS,
Islamabad : Pakistani wrestlers who won two gold medals at the 2010 Commonwealth Games (CWG) in Delhi were the only saving grace for the country as it ranked a dismal 17th in the final medal tally of the mega event former players and the common people opined.
The performance of the Pakistani tennis, squash and hockey players left a lot to be desired in the Oct 3-14 Games – this was the consensus amongst former players and common people IANS spoke to about the performance of the Pakistani atheletes.
Pakistan clinched 17th position in the 71-team Games with two gold, one silver and two bronze medals.
Wrestlers Muhammad Inam and Azhar Hussain won gold medals after a 40-year hiatus at the Games.
“They showed the hard work and resilience can lead to achieving glory against all odds,” said daily Express.
The hockey team had won two matches in a row to raise the expectations of people back home, but their performance later nosedived as they lost 4-7 to India and could not make it to the medal round.
“The team could not handle the pressure of the big stage and the senior players also disappointed with their stick work”, said former team captain Muhammad Usman.
Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) secretary Asif Bajwa said that “he was equally dismayed the below par performance of the boys in green”.
There have been calls from former players to sack the PHF office-bearers in wake of the team’s repeated bad performances to revitalize the game in the country, which lists hockey as its national game.
The squash players were unable to match the energy and fitness level of their opponents, while the tennis stars Aisam-ul-Haq and Aqeel Khan, also failed to live up to their reputation.
“Much was expected of Aisam after the US open where he reached the finals of men’s doubles and mixed doubles, but it was not to be,” wrote daily Express.
“The games, though, underlined one big reality that sports events can be used to bridge the differences between India and Pakistan,” said daily Jang.
“The reception given to the contingent at the inauguration and the (media) coverage to athletes subsequently showed that the Indian media and fans had risen above the petty differences to cheer for them,” it added.
(Awais Saleem can be contacted at [email protected])