Chief selector Mohammad Asif Bajwa unfolds the names of players
Pakistan to face Netherlands on December 6 in their opening fixture
Abdul Jabbar Faisal
ISLAMABAD: The National Selection Committee (NSC) Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) headed by Mohammad Asif Bajwa named an 18-man national hockey junior team, which will take part in the forthcoming FIH Junior Hockey World Cup 2023, starting from December 5 at Bukit Jalil National Hockey Stadium, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. As many as 16 teams worldwide will fight for top honour during the 12-day international prestigious hockey showpiece, as Argentine will defend their title.
On Wednesday, Mohammad Asif Bajwa flanked by member of the NSC Olympian Anjum Saeed, Manager Asif Naz Khokhar, and Head Coach Roelant Oltamans, announced the squad after the approval President PHF, Khalid Sajjad Khokhar.
It is pertinent to mention here that Green Shirts won only one time Junior Hockey World Cup title in 1979 after defeating West Germany in the final. In 1993, Pakistan had claimed the silver medal while three times Pakistan got third position in 1982, 1985, and 1989. Pakistan could not stand on victory podium for 30 years.
Team Officials: Asif Naz Khokhar (Manager), Roelant Oltamans (Head Coach), Olympian Shakeel Abbasi, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Asif (Coaches), Mohammad Aslam (Physiotherapist) Nadeem Lodhi (Video Analyst)
Names of players: Ali Raza, Abdul Rafay Sajid, Arbaaz Ahmed, Mohammad Sufyan Khan, Ehtsham Aslam, Aqeel Ahmed, Abdul Manan, Mohammad Murtaza Yaqub, Zikaria Hayat, Mohammad Hayat, Ghazanfar Ali, Ali Murtaza, Arshad Liaquat, Abdul Hanan Shahid, Abdul Rehman , Umar Mustafa, Abuzar, Abdul Qayyum
Reserve players: Basharat Ali and Arbaaz Ayaz
Teams (16):
Pool A: Argentina, Australia, Chile, Malaysia
Pool B: Egypt, France, Germany, South Africa
Pool C: Canada, India, Korea, Spain
Pool D: Belgium, Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan
