Hockey India's (HI) decision to withdraw from the proposed Pro League, communicated by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) on Sunday, is as unexpected as it is inexplicable.
Even as we await an official explanation from HI, here's a look at the possible reasons behind the decision and what it could mean for Indian hockey.
An attempt to save HIL?
The future of the Hockey India League (HIL) could come under a cloud with the Pro League starting in 2019, as the latter would keep all the top male players of the world busy with their national teams between January and June on a regular basis.
Could this be an attempt by HI to make sure that the HIL stay afloat, especially once the Pro League gets under way in 2019? It will be a challenge to generate interest for the league in that scenario, though, especially with the best active men's players busy with their national teams during January-February, the usual window for the HIL.
Can HI compensate by dangling lucrative contracts for recently retired greats of the game, or perhaps get a few of them to quit international hockey for good in the process? The financial health of the HIL would seem to suggest that could be a challenge.
Why India's withdrawal makes little sense
Unnamed HI officials have told a few media outlets that India were unsure of the ranking criteria used to determine the teams for the nine-team Pro League, specifically for the women's competition. While the sixth-ranked men would probably have been in contention in any case, the 13th-ranked women's team had beaten off some higher-ranked competitors when the league was announced earlier this year.
As a country that has been actively involved in organising global events in world hockey, especially since the successful organisation of the men's World Cup in New Delhi in 2010, it is a little hard to believe India were taken by surprise by the format and selection criteria used to identify the Pro League participants.
Worst sufferers
It is sad and ironic that the women's team is being talked of by some as an excuse for India to pull out of the Pro League, when the Indian women would have the most to gain from participation in the sport. While the men have benefitted from hosting a number of events and hence getting direct entry to some of the top events of global hockey, that hasn't been the case with the women, who are in Johannesburg at the moment hoping to qualify for next year's World Cup, which would be their first appearance in the quadrennial event since 2010.
The Pro League seeks to replace the World League as a direct qualifier for both the Olympics and eventually the World Cup, and the Indian women made it to the Olympics for the first time in 36 years last year only on the basis of their performance in the World League Semi-Final the previous year. At a time when teams like China, South Korea, Belgium, Italy and Chile are doing everything they can to get themselves up to speed with top-ranked countries like Australia, the Netherlands, Argentina and Great Britain, the Pro League would have given the Indian team a chance to play the best in all conditions and improve their game. This withdrawal now narrows the window of opportunity of qualification to big events, if not shutting the door completely on their chances.
Not a financial issue
While India continues to be one of the biggest backers of global hockey, it is not as skewed an equation as in cricket. Hockey is also a considerably more democratic sport in terms of the influence of member nations and their say in determining the courses of action.
HI, it is learnt, are surprised that FIH have accepted their withdrawal so quickly. Still, they could be hoping that the prospect of losing Indian corporates as sponsors might make the global body reconsider negotiating terms with India or even shelve the Pro League altogether.
Hockey, however, has had sponsorship deals with lucrative international partners in recent times, including the governments of energy-rich Azerbaijan as well as Argentina. If India do pull out of the Pro League, there will a definite dent in the global interest in the league, but the financial setback might be lesser than what some on the Indian side of the debate are claiming.