It was, quite literally, a journey via heaven to hell for the Indian rugby team. The Indian Rugby Union had organised a three-week training camp for its players in South Africa, the No 1 rugby playing nation in the world.
Once in SA, the players received the best possible trainers, coaches, support staff and state-of-the-art training facilities.

The flight of fancy ran into turbulence though.

Captain Nasser Hussain's men landed in India on August 25 and after a week's rest, were asked to assemble for a camp at Pune's Balewadi Sports Complex to prepare for the Shanghai Sevens tournament.

Within days of the start of the camp, three India players P Gopinath Surinder Singh and Roshaan Sethna injured themselves so badly that they had to be replaced with new faces.

"The pitch in Pune is in very poor condition," thundered India's coach Hendre Martinz. The South African insisted that training conditions were so pathetic that the team had to leave for an important tournament unprepared.

"We're expected to face the best professional units from Asia, and at the Commonwealth Games, compete with England and South Africa and New Zealand. And look at our preparation... so amateurish. Training like amateurs we've lost three players. And these are specific positions. So, it has come to a stage where we need to address the issue since we've been complaining for three and a half months that the pitch is harder than a cricket pitch," he said.

However, Sanjay Sabnis, Assistant Director of the Balewadi Sports Complex, countered Martinz's claim and said it was a trivial matter blown out of proportion.

"They asked for one facility and decided to train at the other. The one that they eventually trained at was in bad shape and we have already floated tenders to initiate repair work. It was just a small confusion which led to such a big chaos," Sabnis said.

But Norman Laker, who operates with Martinez, is in no mood to buy any explanation.

"The frustrating thing is we have huge ability, but this way we'll never realise our potential. How can you expect a team to train on pitches with no goalpost and lines marked?" fumed Laker.

Meanwhile, India have been placed in Group C, along with the home team and Chinese Taipei for the tournament to be played in China, beginning September 12.

"We have been placed in a tough group but we are looking to translate the new things that we have learnt while competing in this tournament," captain Hussain said.