To sum it up in one line, the slow poison of bad-governance and mismanagement has dragged the sport of hockey into a coma. There have been a lot of wake-up calls before — the Asian Games, where we failed to finish on the podium, was the loudest. But this will rank as the worst, the most horrible knock on the door.

There has always been media attention on hockey, but with this exit, things have gotten as desperate as they ever could.

If the federation doesn’t wake up now, it never will.

We’ve been performing well in patches — in the six and seven-nations, giving us the notion that we are amongst the elite. But when it counted at the Asian Games, we weren’t among the elite four. It’s then that we realised that it’s not a joke anymore.

The association has erred very badly. They called former Australian player Ric Charlesworth and didn’t give him responsibilities due to a coach of his calibre. I think he should immediately be offered a long contract, and given all the facilities. If that’s done, I can bet he’ll bring you the results.

If you are seriously thinking of beating the same Great Britain side in the coming years, and making a mark at the London Olympics 2012, then Charlesworth should be given responsibility straightaway.

It’s not about appointing a ‘foreign’ coach — it’s about going for the best in business, and there’s nobody better than him around.

The writer played for India at the Seoul and Barcelona Olympics, and was later a part of the national team’s coaching think-tank. He spoke to Shivani Naik