Aimal wants training camp, tours for Asian championship

KARACHI: Pakistan volleyball team captain Aimal Khan has said that the national brigade will need training tours and a long camp ahead of the Asian Championship slated to be held in Japan from September 12-19, 2021.

“If we are to further improve our performance in Asian circuit, it will be of great value to have a long training camp and tours ahead of the Asian Championship,” Aimal told ‘The News’ on Tuesday.

“My request to the federation is that it should arrange at least one foreign tour. The team can be sent to Iran where strong clubs exist and we can get solid practice. Qatar and Turkey are the other good options,” said Aimal, the best spiker the country has.

Pakistan’s best performance in the continental event was in 1989 edition in Seoul when the Green-shirts finished fourth.

In the last Asian Championship in Tehran in 2019, Pakistan ended seventh under the captaincy of Aimal and qualified for the Olympics qualifiers. However, the Green-shirts did not feature in the qualifiers in China early this year because of financial issues.

“We can hold training camps even if there is no immediate international assignment. The issue is if we want result we will need camps, not one but more. Such steps are absolutely necessary for developing the team,” Aimal said.

“When we get engaged in international matches it will instill a lot of confidence in the boys and I am very much optimistic that the outcome at the Asian Championship will be very good following such steps,” he said.

“Only a camp is not enough for preparing for such a big event,” he was quick to add.

“Foreign tours leave a good impression on players’ health also as the environment and diet change and players get mentally refreshed,” the skipper said.

“Ahead of the Olympic qualifiers in Kazakhstan a few years ago the PVF chairman Chaudhry Yaqoob arranged for us a tour to Turkey. We played a three-match friendly series against Turkey and we won that 2-1,” Aimal recalled.

“From there we went to Kazakhstan and finished second in the Asian Olympic qualifiers. And before the 2017 Olympic qualifying round we were in Baku in connection with Islamic Games. After featuring in Baku event, we went to Kyrgyzstan for Asian qualifiers and got second position. We had already got match temperament through these tours and the team was ready and that was why we did well,” he said.

“It is important for the players to remain attached throughout the year with the ball. Had we got our own league we would not have required any training tours. But as we have no league we need exposure and foreign tours. This is the only option to develop the team,” Aimal said.

“If we wait for a year for the Asian Championship, just play events in Pakistan and then we go to an indoor facility to prepare for the continental event then it will require a lot of time to regain the fitness and form,” he said.