KARACHI, 26 March 2005 — Pakistan’s youth hockey squash on Thursday night left Lahore for Kuala Lumpur where they will compete in a six-nation junior tournament.
The team include three key players whose fitness are in question. Captain Shakeel Abbasi, winger Adnan Zakir and midfielder Khalid Mahmood are all suffering from injury problems and might have to sit out of some of the matches of the invitational event starting in the Malaysian capital from tomorrow.
“It’s a cause of concern for us because all of them are among our leading players,” Pakistan coach Tahir Zaman told this correspondent before the team’s departure to Kuala Lumpur.
Pakistan would play the opening match of the six-nation tournament against hosts Malaysia tomorrow. India, Germany, Korea and England would also feature in the eight-day tournament, which is to serve as one of the warm-up events for this summer’s Junior World Cup in Holland.
The Pakistan team, after winning a four-nation junior tournament in Lahore earlier this month, trained for a few days for the Kuala Lumpur stint. It was during the training sessions that the trio suffered injuries that kept the players out of action for the best part of the training camp. Athens Olympian Shakeel Abbasi is the team’s most experienced striker while Adnan Zakir, who has also played for the national senior team, is one of its best wingers. Khalid Mahmood has also established himself as a key player in the midfield. Tahir said he was expecting the players to be back in shape before or during the tournament.
However, the former Olympian added that he would not risk serious injury to the players.
“We are taking them to Malaysia but would only field them in the matches if they are fully fit,” he said. Tahir said he and fellow team officials were looking forward to an improved performance from the boys in Kuala Lumpur. “Our focus would be on improvement though winning the title is certainly our ultimate target,” said Tahir.
The coach rates his team among the favorites for the crown alongside India and Germany.
However, Tahir said that his team would not be taking any opponent for granted in the Kuala Lumpur tournament. “India and Germany would be among the leading contenders along with Pakistan. But I must say that beating teams like England, Korea and Malaysia won’t be easy either,” he said.
