Lahore: Members of the Pakistani national hockey team were allegedly made to clean the kitchen and wash dishes in hotels in Australia over unpaid bills.
Captain Ammad Shakeel Butt lashed out at the country’s hockey federation after reaching Lahore on Wednesday, saying that players can’t work under the current management.
“We can’t work with this current management of the federation,” Butt told reporters. “When players have to clean the kitchen and wash dishes before going to play a match, what result do you expect?” he said, as reported by timesnow.in.
Their tour to Australia began with an ordeal. The players were initially left stranded at Sydney Airport for 12-13 hours before travelling to Canberra. Upo
n reaching the city, the players were forced to roam the streets with their luggage as their hotel bookings were cancelled due to unpaid bills.
After spending hours on the roads, the Pakistani players were accommodated in an Airbnb, only for 10 days, for a 13-day trip. They were later shifted to cheaper accomodations midway through the tour. The results for Pakistan were equally poor as the team lost all their matches to Australia and Germany.
With the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) confirming that it had released over 10 million rupees (nearly $36,000) specifically for the team’s hotel expenses in Australia, the Pakistan Hockey Federation is now in a spot.
Butt further said that the players were threatened of discliplinary action if they spoke to the media. He said that the team has a good bunch of players, but they need a good coach and management.
“I am speaking up because of what we have been through in Australia,” the captain said.
“We need a foreign coach if we have to move forward. We have a good combination of players, but we need a foreign coach and good management,” Butt added.