WSH will go ahead without problem, says IHF chief Shetty

"We don't foresee any problem (in conducting WSH-2)," IHF president R K Shetty told PTI, while responding to the HI statement.

HI secretary general Narinder Batra in a media release today stated that all 16 members of the team that took part in the London Olympics have signed up for the inaugural league.

Batra also announced that 32 junior players, who are getting Rs 10,000 a month-stipend, will be part of the players' auction of the Hockey India League.

But Shetty did not foresee any problem in conducting WSH, a joint initiative of IHF with Nimbus Sport.

"We had allowed players who had signed up for WSH to play in the Olympic qualifiers as we wanted India to do well. But none of the players who took part in WSH were considered for selection and it resulted in the team finishing last," Shetty said.

"And the supremo of HI (Batra) had the cheek to say he owns up responsibility for the poor display. In any other country he would have been sacked, but not here," he said.

Shetty also informed that IHF has not responded to the International Hockey Federation's (FIH) letter asking it, as well as HI, to provide written submissions explaining the basis on which both bodies maintain that they were the ones who fulfil the FIH's membership criteria and not the other.

The deadline given was September 7, but IHF has not complied with the FIH's missive, informed Shetty who hit out at the world body for threatening Indian players of an Olympic ban if they turned out in WSH and then reneging on this in the case of Pakistan.

"Has anyone asked FIH how they issued a threat to the Indian players not to take part in WSH and then allowed Pakistan players, who played in our tournament, to take part in the Olympics," he queried.