Started about a month back on 13th January, this was the beginning and fruition of three years of efforts of Indian Hockey Federation chief KPS Gill, ESPN, Star Sports as well as LSM (Leisure Sports Management).
The PHL consists of two Tiers; Tier I, also called “Premier League”, with professional, experienced players and Tier II, also named as “First Division”, with fresh, new talented players in the Hockey.
Tier I teams are:
1. Sher-e-Jallandhar,
Maratha Warriors,
Chennai Veerans,
Hyderabad Sultans,
Bangalore Hi-flyers
Tier II teams are:
1. Delhi Dazzlers,
Lucknow Nawabs,
Imphal Rangers,
Bengal Tigers,
Chandigrah Dynamos
The matches are to be played in the round-robin format wherein each team plays the other twice. Instead of two halves, the matches feature four quarters of 17-1/2 minutes each, with 3 breaks, 2.5 minutes after first and third half and 5 minutes after second half.
There won’t be any draws in these matches and an extended time of 15 minutes with the number of players reducing form normal 11 to 9 in the first 5 minutes and then 7 in the next 10 minutes. This is for more result-oriented game.
Sonu Nigam, the famous singer has recorded the PHL Anthem under the direction of Sandesh Shandliya. It’s a great number and actually quite vibrant and full of energy, like the game itself.
Yesterday, Hyderabad Sultans won the first PHL Tier I title, defeating the shers of Jallandhar (actually, this is my team) with a 2-1 goal score. The PHL matches were held at Gachibowli Stadium in Hyderabad and the audience was fabulous, fantastic and appreciative of the game and the kind of cheering and applaud was there, it seemed just out-of-world as Hockey has never attracted as much attention as in the last month in PHL.
Three cheers for such a crowd, who were not only enjoying the game but also making the game more enjoyable for those watching it on Star Sports. I honestly wish to thank Hyderabad for supporting and showing so much love for Hockey.
Aimed at increasing the popularity, boosting the morality of the players and even giving the game a more fast-paced edge, this seemed to be a successful affair and I hope, it will continue doing that for the coming years.
In the country, where not many people are even aware that Hockey is our National Game, not to talk about the game itself, this seemed to be good time and great effort. I hope it is able to achieve the same significance as American Baseball League has reached for Baseball in America, as PHL is based on almost the same format.
And last but not the least, there are foreign players, from Pakistan, Spain, also who participated in the game, giving the game more international appeal. The goal-keeper of Hyderabad Sultans is Alam from Pakistan and he did a marvellous job in defending his side.
I dedicate my review to all those who came forward for this brilliant beginning of this wonderful game. I wish and hope and pray that Hockey recaptures its glory, again reaches its status as gold medal winning game and even rekindles the interests of new generation of youngsters, who although have begun to see beyond cricket, but still don’t look at Hockey.