After winning the Asian Championship tournament, Indian Hockey team vice-captain and hero of the match Hardik Singh was awarded with the $200 (Rs 16,500) cheque, while a whooping Rs 1,00,000 was awarded to an Indian cricket team if he becomes man of the match.
However, social media platform – X (formerly known as Twitter) was filled with the reactions, critising the authorities along with comparing it with the huge payouts of the Indian cricketers.
Taking the matter to X, Harjinder Singh Kukreja wrote, “While the ‘Hero of the hockey match’ receives just USD 200, cricketers are rewarded with a minimum of $1500 for Man of the Match. It’s imperative to reassess our priorities if we expect Indian Hockey to excel. Let’s foster and finance talent appropriately. FIH, it’s time to bolster support for Indian Hockey. #INDvPAK #AsianChampionsTrophy”
Read more: Asian Champions Trophy Final 2023: Team India become four-time champion, defeat Malaysia by 4-3
While the ‘Hero of the hockey match’ receives just USD 200, cricketers are rewarded with a minimum of $1500 for Man of the Match. It's imperative to reassess our priorities if we expect Indian Hockey to excel. Let's foster and finance talent appropriately. FIH, it's time to…
— Harjinder Singh Kukreja (@SinghLions) August 9, 2023
Another person Sandeep Amar tweeted, “@sancalls #AsianChampionsTrophy @ianuragthakur Sir, India wins Asian Hockey Champions Trophy and the player of the match Hardik Singh, our vice captain, GETS $200 cheque!!! This is shocking! These heroes getting peanuts, as cricketers make crores – very unfortunate!!”
#AsianChampionsTrophy @ianuragthakur Sir, India wins Asian Hockey Champions Trophy and the player of the match Hardik Singh, our vice captain, GETS $200 cheque!!! This is shocking! These heroes getting peanuts, as cricketers make crores – very unfortunate!! pic.twitter.com/EpcBPtZcug
— Sandeep Amar (@sancalls) August 12, 2023
Sanjay Bansal wrote, “@ianuragthakur Sir, congratulations for winning the Asia Cup ..in your presence the hero of the Cup gets only $200. What a shame for Indian hockey. Sir, kindly award him with something substantial so that looking at that Indian hockey gets a boost..”
On the other hand, a hockey fan, who did not wish to be named said, “It is very unfair that the heroes of the game which is considered as India’s national game is being awarded with only $200 cheque, while an Indian cricket team player is awarded with a handsome amount of Rs 1,00,000. The concerned authorities should pay attention to this issue as it is very unfortunate to see our hockey heroes working so hard to keep the name of the country on top.”
The Indian hockey team clinched the Asian Champions Trophy 2023 with a thrilling victory. In the final match held at the Radhakrishnan Stadium in Chennai, Team India secured the title by defeating Malaysia 4-3.
Meanwhile, in year 2022, The reconstituted apex council of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced that the match fees for international women cricketers will now match those of their male counterparts in order to address the gender pay disparity in Indian cricket.
“Female cricketers will now receive Rs. 15 lakh for Test matches, Rs. 6 lakh for ODIs, and Rs. 3 lakh for T20Is, bringing their compensation in line with that of male players,” BCCI stated.
This move of BCCI provides the people hope that as the Indian players are excelling in every sport, the authorities should also facilitate them with accurate payout.
