Brazilian coach hopes to improve Pak volleyball stature in world

KARACHI: Newly-hired Brazilian volleyball coach Cristiano Rodrigues Campos who will land in Islamabad on Monday (today) is excited about his Pakistan assignment.

“I am really excited for this new challenge,” Cristiano told ‘The News’ from Brazil just before his departure for Pakistan.

In the first step, Cristiano will join the national under-20 volleyball team which will feature in the 21st Asian Men’s Under-20 Volleyball Championship slated to be held in Bahrain from August 22-29.

The camp is being supervised by four local coaches who will now work with the Brazilian.

Cristiano is determined to bring improvement in Pakistan’s volleyball which needs a big lift as in the discipline there is immense talent. The country has produced several players who have been doing well in foreign leagues for the last few years.

“I hope to have a good time with the players, improving the level of Pakistan volleyball at the world level,” Cristiano said.

The Brazilian is a young man with strong coaching credentials. The 40-year-old, a former Brazilian player, is a FIVB Level-11 coach. He has worked as a coach with several age-group teams of Brazil besides the senior team. He has also coached various Brazilian clubs.

“He is a good coach,” said former Pakistan captain Naseer Ahmed who during his professional stint with a Lebanon club played under Cristiano’s coaching.

“In 2013 when I was playing in Lebanon league for the first time, it was the last season for Cristiano as a player in that league and in 2015 he was the coach of my Lebanon club,” Naseer told ‘The News’. “He has been a professional player and also has a degree in physical sciences,” he said.

However, he said that it would have to be seen how he works in Pakistan. “Hopefully he will live up to the expectations,” Naseer said.

Pakistan Volleyball Federation (PVF) secretary Shah Naeem Zafar hopes that Cristiano will do well. “He is skilled and highly professional and I hope he will deliver,” Shah told ‘The News’.

“He will join the national under-20 team currently training in Islamabad to prepare for the continental event. In May we are also going to hold a camp of the national senior team for Asian Games and other commitments,” Shah said.

“A national women camp is also in progress in Islamabad but we will stop it on March 31 due to Ramadan,” Shah said.

If Cristiano delivers then he will serve Pakistan until the 14th South Asian Games which Pakistan is supposed to host in March 2023.

Pakistan senior team’s major assignment is the Asian Games slated to be held in Hangzhou, China, from September 10-25. Before that Islamic Games are also expected to be held in Konya, Turkey, in August.

Cristiano will replace Iranian coach Rahman Mohammdirad who handled the country’s national senior team in the Asian Championship in Japan last year. Mohammadirad served Pakistan as a coach for hardly three months.

In 2009, too, Pakistan had a Brazilian coach — Augusto Sabatini.

Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) will pay the salary to the Brazilian.