‘Pro volleyball league now in November’

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Volleyball Federation (PVF) has postponed its inaugural professional league following the outbreak of COVID-19 that has dealt a telling blow to all sports activities around the world.

PVF Chairman Chaudhry Yaqoob told ‘The News’ that the league was set to be organised in April-May. “We were about to enter a new volleyball era in Pakistan with the inauguration of the first professional league. The coronavirus outbreak, however, has ruined all our plans and we have decided to defer it till November this year. That will only be possible if life comes back to normal,” he said. “As a Muslim I am confident that with the grace and help of God Almighty we will overcome this pandemic.”

Yaqoob said it was planned that eight teams with names of cities would compete in the league. “We have already reached sponsorship deals and all the formalities are complete. We were about to announce our plans when the pandemic’s impacts started surfacing.”

Players from outside Pakistan were also to feature in the league. “Since Pakistan is a leading Asian volleyball nation, players from some top clubs have also expressed their willingness to compete in the tournament. Our plans are the same for November with matches expected to be held in Peshawar, Wah, Islamabad, Lahore, Sialkot, Sahiwal, Karachi, Quetta and Faisalabad.

“We want to organise matches in those areas where volleyball is popular. Hopefully the league will be a big success. Its expected success means a lot to us as it will give a fresh impetus to the sport in the country.”

The PVF chairman said all these months the government has done very little for promotion of volleyball. “In wake of no or little support from the government, we have to generate our own resources to help volleyball flourish. A single tour abroad costs us almost Rs7-8 million. The government’s share is just peanuts. So it is very important to get things moving by generating our own resources and the professional league will help us in this regard.”

Amongst the tournaments that were cancelled due to the virus included the Under-18 and Under-20 Asian Championships. “Pakistan are also scheduled to compete in the Asian senior event in September. We hope the tournament will go ahead as planned.”

Yaqoob spoke highly of his players, saying recently Pakistan have beaten top teams including Asian giants. “Despite having meagre resources and no outside help we are currently ranked amongst the best in Asia. We hope to carry on to become giants of Asian volleyball, especially after the league,” he said.