Former Pakistan skipper Rehan Butt wishes he could have been part of the final – Hockey News
Rehan Butt, the veteran striker and the former captain of the Pakistan national hockey team, showed a burning desire to be a part of the national hockey team in the final of the inaugural edition of the Asian Champions Trophy hockey tournament which will
be played between the arch-rivals, Pakistan and India in Ordos, China on Sunday, September 11.
“It is a mouth-watering clash. Pakistan and India have been great rivals and I wish I could have been the part of it,” Rehan Butt shared his views.
The seasoned campaigner had been dropped from the national side for the Asian Champions Trophy along with two other experienced players including goalkeeper Salman Akbar and the World Record holder drag flicker Sohail Abbas. This was done in order to give
them proper time to improve their fitness before some of the major tournaments like FIH Men’s Champions Trophy to be played in this December and the prestigious event of Olympic Games to be held in London, England in July 2012.
Thus, the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) has relied upon their young guns by including them into the national side for the ongoing event in China. The new players have shown a phenomenal performance throughout the tournament and qualified for the final
by remaining at the top spot on points table with ten points.
After the preliminary round where they scored three impressive victories while they were defeated by Japan before ending their group campaign by playing a 2-2 draw against the traditional rivals. The Greenshirts battered Malaysia, China and South Korea,
the Asian Champions, in fine style.
Meanwhile, Khwaja Junaid, the manager of the national hockey team, looked content with the performance of his athletes in the event and stated that the young players are improving daily.
“It was a better performance. It was a tough match and I was satisfied by the way the team performed. We played as per the plan but we will have to be mindful in the final,” Khwaja Junaid said.
Zeeshan Ashraf, another former skipper, also looked quite hopeful for the Greenshirts to emerge as victorious in the event. It will be interesting to see how Pakistan performs in the final against India.
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