9-month ban on ‘unruly’ Gurbaj Singh
The ban will end on May 9, 2016
By : DC Correspondent
Update: 2015-08-11 02:52 GMT
New Delhi: Exactly a year ahead of the Rio Olympic Games, Hockey India on Monday suspended senior midfielder Gurbaj Singh for nine months following reports of indiscipline. The 26-year old will be unable to take part in any FIH or HI sanctioned tournaments during this period.
A four-member disciplinary committee headed by Harbinder Singh met here on the day to discuss the charges levied by the support staff — including assistant coach Jude Felix — who had accused the Punjab player of “being rude” and “not co-operating with anyone other than the chief coach” during the recently-concluded World League semifinals in Belgium.
They had also accused him of refusing to play in any position other than right-half and trying to create factions within the team. Gurbaj, who was also present during the meeting, was left surprised by the ban which he termed as “harsh”.
Insiders suggest that trouble began during the World League semi-finals, when Gurbaj and skipper Sardar Singh were involved in a tiff during a match. The ban will end on May 9, 2016, and also rules out the 200-match veteran from the upcoming season of the Hockey India League.