Talk to the players, sort out issue: Gill tells Hockey India

New Delhi: Terming the players` revolt as an `unfortunate` incident, former hockey federation chief KPS Gill today advised the authorities to talk to the national

team members and bring them back to the camp. Gill, whose 15-year tenure as Indian Hockey Federation president came to an end with the Indian Olympic Association disbanding the IHF in 2008, said instead of playing blame game, Hockey India (HI) officials should sit with the players and sort out the issue. "I am sure that whatever the issue is, certainly the administration and the players can sit together and sort out the difference in no time," Gill told a news channel. "The talking point is whether they were promised something or not. In any case, if they are asking for something then (HI should) go and talk to them," Gill said. The players took the unprecedented step to stay away from the World Cup preparatory camp in Pune after HI failed to respond to two of their letters asking the authorities to make their due payments. "The situation is certainly unfortunate for everyone concerned for the game. This problem must be sorted out rather than battling over who said what," Gill said. The revolt that comes barely a month before the World Cup in New Delhi is bound to have a bearing on the preparations for the high-profile event scheduled from February 28 to March 13. PTI