Thursday, when our players, both hockey and squash teams, won gold medals at the Asian Games, was a day of jubilation for the people who were sick of hearing bad news round the clock. The public was especially crestfallen about the way the sport of cricket had been caught in a web of controversies. The hockey win is our first major victory in 20 years and hopefully it would herald a better era for the sport. All the team players deserve a big hand. The factor of Sohail Abass securing a penalty corner soon after the match got under way resulting in their first goal gave the team a psychological edge, greatly boosting their confidence. Afterwards, the Malaysian team could not get the better of Pakistani side and was unable to put up its topnotch form it had been displaying all along the tournament. At the same time, one must appreciate the efforts of Pakistan Hockey Federation, which has been trying to provide first-rate coaching facilities to the players. Our squash turned out to be equally good and succeeded in defeating the Malaysian players to claim the gold medal. Aamir Atlas and Farhan Mehboob through their stamina and good shot selection outmatched their Malaysian opponents to win the mens team title. With the womens cricket team also winning the final, a total of three gold medals in the Asian Games have been bagged. Clearly, it shows that there is plenty of talent in the country waiting to be tapped. With sheer hard work and determination, our players in the Asian Games have proved that they could be as good as top players and teams around the world. The scandal-plagued Pakistan Cricket Board must seriously ponder over why it has veered off the track and learn its lesson. It ought to set its house in order. Both squash and hockey have been on the decline, yet in the recent past efforts and energy devoted by both players and the boards has at last resulted in a big victory and done us all proud.