KARACHI, 25 March 2005 — Pakistan’s record-breaking short corner marksman Sohail Abbas may come out of retirement to play in a three-match series against old rivals India being arranged to raise funds for last December’s tsunami victims.
Top national hockey officials would be inviting Sohail to join the national team for the fund-raiser to be played in three different venues across South Asia next month.
According to the tentative program, the opening match of the series would be played in Karachi on April 22 followed by a game in Colombo and the final match in India, either in Chandigarh or New Delhi.
Sohail, who broke Dutch legend Paul Litjens’ world record of 274 goals in a Test match against India in Amritsar last fall, announced his retirement from international hockey after the 2004 Champions Trophy in Lahore in December.
He had cited mental and physical exhaustion as the reasons for quitting. At that time, Sohail had also said that he would only reconsider making a comeback if needed for the World Cup to be held in Munchengladbach (Germany) next September.
However, Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) would be seeking his return for next month’s series against India.
In fact, PHF President Tariq Kirmani is scheduled to meet Sohail in Karachi today and is expected to ask him to unretire and play in the fund-raising series.
One of the reasons why the PHF want Sohail to play in the series is because currently he is the country’s biggest hockey star and the federation could expect to generate substantial funds from the series if Sohail were to play.
If he agrees, then Sohail would enter the national training camp, which would get under way at the Hockey Club of Pakistan in Karachi by the end of this month.
The HCP would be hosting the first of the three matches of the fund-raising series under floodlights on April 22. The next stop would be Colombo, which would host the second match on April 25 before the teams fly to India for the last match to be staged on April 27 or 28.
All the proceeds from the series would be given in the international fund for the victims of the Dec. 26 tsunami that killed almost 300,000 in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and several other countries in the region.
Pakistan and India agreed to play the series on the request of the Sri Lankan hockey officials.
However, a top PHF official said that the series’ itinerary is yet to be put down in black and white.
“Tentatively the series would take place from April 22 to 28 but it needs to be confirmed by all the three parties,” said PHF Secretary Brigadier (R) Musarrat Ullah Khan.
He said that he was in touch with top hockey officials in India and Sri Lanka and added that the schedule of the series would be finalised soon. Pakistan are expected to invite 30 odd players for the training camp starting later this month.
Musarrat said that the training camp and the series against India would help prepare the national team for the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup to be played in Kuala Lumpur this summer. Some of the world’s top teams would be competing in the seven-nation tournament.
