Pakistan, April 9 -- There was a time when Pakistan's name echoed across global sports arenas. The hockey team's lightning-fast moves left opponents bewildered, Jahangir Khan's squash dominance spanned a decade untouched, and cricket victories became national therapy during turbulent times. Today, these triumphs feel like relics of a forgotten era.

Pakistan's sports crisis is not merely about losing matches. In essence, it's a failure of vision. Compare our shambolic gymnasiums to India's Khelo India, where rural talents can easily access Olympic-grade facilities. While Pakistan's Rs 12.8 billion sports budget prioritizes cricket, Saudi Arabia invests billions in sports cities, and Turkey's 2023 revival plan boosted youth engagement by 4...