ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Volleyball Federation (PVF) has made one change in the 14-member squad announced Friday to take on powerful Australia in the three-match series starting at the Liaquat Gymnasium Islamabad on May 28.
Murad Jehan, the tall figure from Bannu, will lead the team against a team ranked 21 places higher than the host nation. The Australian team is arriving in the capital on May 26 to play the first-ever volleyball series between the two countries before heading for Bahrain to compete in the Challenge Cup.
Ali Haider has been replaced with Haider Ali in the 14-member squad that won the Central Asian Volleyball just last week at the same venue. Ch Mohammad Yaqoob, Chairman PVF announced the team during a media talk where he maintained that shortly some of the best teams would be seen travelling to Pakistan for different competitions. “Australia will be here for the very first time. We have successfully hosted the Central Asian Volleyball League and within the next couple of years, you will see more international teams of top repute making trips to Pakistan for different events and series. Pakistan is making big strides on the volleyball front with the main aim to make the sports one of the most followed ones in the country,” he said.
Yaqoob hoped that the team could give a tough challenge to the visitors ranked almost 30 places higher in the international ranking. “I am confident that the way Pakistan played in the Central Asian Volleyball, they have the capacity to give a tough time to the visiting team.”
The Australian twenty-member squad will arrive in Islamabad on Sunday (May 26). The first match of the three-match series will be held on May 28 at Liaquat Gymnasium, Pakistan Sports Complex, with the second on May 29, and the third match of the series is scheduled on May 30.
“All matches will be starting from 6:30 PM and entry of the fans and supporters is free. Fans must come to cheer the green shirts as they have shown excellent performance and won the Central Asian Volleyball,” Chaudhry Yaqoob, said.
“Despite lack of resources, we are making strenuous efforts to improve our standards to compete internationally. We need full government support to utilize maximum resources for the promotion of volleyball games nationally and internationally.”