University should make hockey compulsory in colleges: Carvalho

Olympian and former India hockey coach Joaquim Carvalho has a unique suggestion to elevate the dwindling status of hockey in the country.

"The Mumbai University team did not have it easy in the recent all-India tournament at the MHA-Mahindra Stadium and this is proof that there is a decent following for the national game," said Carvalho.

"However, there are only a handful of colleges that field hockey teams. Unless the University ensures maximum participation, we could miss out on hidden talent. For example, a particular college may have a poor hockey team, however one or two players in that side may be brilliant and could be picked for the state or national teams. For this reason, I would like to suggest to the Mumbai University to try and make hockey compulsory in colleges," he added.