Lahore Qalandars determined to revive hockey

KARACHI: Eager to play their role in the revival of hockey in Pakistan, Shaheen Shah Afridi-led Lahore Qalandars reached Karachi Hockey Association (KHA) ground on Friday.

Qalandars, hoping to boost the national game, took the initiative to hold open trials in Karachi and Lahore.

Shaheen and company reached KHA to watch the trials, where hundreds of kids appeared at 10am on Friday.

The complete squad of Qalandars took a round of KHA and also met some of the players who took part in the trials. Meanwhile, fans took selfies with their favourite cricket heroes.

Speaking to the media on this occasion, Qalandars' owner Atif Rana said he was overwhelmed by the response of youngsters at the trials.

"We got a response beyond our expectations," shared Atif. "After watching massive turnout for trials, we have increased the number of days. Trials will be continued for the next couple of days," he added.

Atif said they would take care of hockey from now onwards in collaboration with Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) and provincial governments.

"We conducted trials of more than 500,000 cricketers. Out of them, we found players like Haris Rauf, Shaheen and others," he shared.

"Similarly, we will find out talented players in hockey and groom them in high-class facilities. 

"We will shortlist players from trials and send them to Germany, Holland, or other countries where we see better opportunities for them," he mentioned.

After the trials, Qalandars will host a hockey series between the teams of Karachi and Lahore. Shaheen will be the ambassador of Karachi whereas Haris will be in the camp of Lahore.