Kashif Jawwad went to
Athens harbouring dreams of helping Pakistan to their
first hockey gold medal in two decades. But he returned
home with the other disappointed members of the national
team that just managed to finish at a face-saving fifth
place in the 12-nation competition last month.
The 23-year-old from Karachi
has been Pakistan's number one striker since the 2000
Games in Sydney but beefy as he is, Kashif does not resemble
the stereotype of a dashing centre-forward in today's
high-speed hockey.
But one has to ignore the
first impression when it comes to this talented young
man. Kashif may be on the heavier side but a few extra
pounds do him little harm. He is as speedy and energetic
a striker as they come.
Since taking over as the
team's first choice pivot since the retirement of former
Pakistan skipper Atif Bashir, Kashif has both attracted
praise and criticism in equal measure.
He is hailed for being
lethal inside the circle but is often assailed for being
unable to show much tact outside it.
Ask Kashif about it and
he would tell you there is little he can do keep everybody
happy. "Whenever I've played for Pakistan, I've tried
to give my best. So if even some people are not satisfied
with my performance, I can do little about it," he
says in an interview with 'The News on Sunday'.
Kashif agrees that he falls
short of some people's expectation because he cannot match
the greatness of some of illustrious his predecessors
like the great Hassan Sardar, also his childhood idol.
But Kashif also laments
the fact that he does not get the sort of support from
his wingers that blessed Hassan Sardar, who in his prime
was well-supported by illustrious wingers on both the
flanks.
"During Hassan Bhai's
era, there were so many stars in the team. They were the
best in the world. I am not defending myself for not being
able to deliver like him for he was a great player but
all I am saying that we don't have the sort of team now
which we had in the past."
But Kashif is quick to
praise his fellow forwards like wingers Rehan Butt and
Shabbir Hussain saying that all of them were always ready
to give their best for the country.
As a young boy, Kashif
never dreamed he would one day play for Pakistan at the
highest level. As a 13-year-old he got his first hockey
experience but surprisingly as a goalkeeper. "I played
my first hockey game for Gulberg Club as their goalkeeper,"
he recalls.
But soon Kashif switched
to the forward-line and the move suited him fine. His
first break came when at 16 he was introduced to former
Olympian Hanif Khan. It was in 1997 that Kashif first
played for Hanif Khan's United Club and it was on the
recommendation of the former Pakistan skipper that Kashif
gave up his position as a left-in to become a centre-forward.
"Hanif Bhai was of the view that I could be a better
player as a centre-forward, so I took his advise."
Kashif made his presence
felt at the domestic level with his skills and talents
and was soon included in the Pakistan Junior team for
a tour of Germany in 1998. The very next year he was on
the plane for Brisbane with the national senior team for
the Champions Trophy.
An action-filled 2000 was
a big year for a teenaged Kashif as he was selected to
lead the Pakistan colts in the Junior Asia Cup in Kuala
Lumpur and also became an Olympian after being included
in Pakistan's 16-member squad for the 2000 Games in Sydney.
But both the experiences ended in frustration. Pakistan
flopped in the Junior Asia Cup and failed to even qualify
for the Junior World Cup held in Hobart (Australia) in
2001. And in Sydney, Pakistan lost 0-1 to Korea in the
semifinals and returned home without a medal.
"I have been in love
with hockey since I took up the sport as a child. Having
played for Pakistan in a lot of international competitions
is also a source of pride. But what I terribly regret
and am sure my other teammates also do is the fact that
we have failed to win a major title for our country. It
is my most cherished dream to either win a World Cup or
an Olympic title before deciding to retire."
Kashif hopes that his dream
would come true either in German city of Munchengladbach,
which will host the 2006 World Cup in Germany or the 2008
Olympic Games in Beijing, China. "Ours is a good
team which will become better with time. I am sure that
if we continue to work hard we will one day bring back
hockey glory for Pakistan."
