LAHORE – The first match of the Hockey Cup 2018 will be played between Pakistan and World XI teams at Abdul Sattar Edhi Stadium in Karachi on Friday.
The match starts at 8:30pm. PTV Sports will broadcast live coverage.
The much-anticipated hockey series is being touted as a watershed moment for those bidding to restore international hockey in the country. The last fixture of the two matches series will be played in Lahore on Sunday, Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) said in press statement on Thursday.
On Wednesday, the PHF announced a 20-member squad for the series. Junaid Manzoor will lead the Green Shirts.
Pakistan Squad:
Junaid Manzoor (Captain) Rizwan Ali (vice-captain) Waqar Younis and Adil Rao (goal-keepers) Rizwan Ali, Rehan Butt, Moin Shakeel, Adeel Latif, Shahzaib Khan, Ghanzafeer Ali, Afraz Hakeem, Umair Sattar, Naveed Alam, Amjad Ali, Awais Arshad, Rana Waheed, Ahmed Nadeem, M. Ilyas, Waqar Ali, Zakirullah and Ibrahim.
Six standby players include Akmal Hussain (goalkeeper), Ali Raza, Hammad Anjum, Murtaza Yaqoob, Zahan Butt and Umer Bilal.
The World XI will comprise 15 to 16 players, mostly from Australia, Germany, Holland, Belgium and Spain. Pakistan’s former hockey captain Sohail Abbas will also be part of the World XI, it added.
The team will later leave for a tour of Argentina on February 5.
