BY ARMSTRONG VAS
Doha: Top-ranked Pakistan which finished third at recently Champions Trophy in Australia is determined to win the Asian Champions Trophy tournament which begins from tomorrow at Al Rayyan Stadium.
Pakistan captain Muhammad Imran said the confidence of the Down Under success will rub on the members of the team during the Asian tournament, which is also contested by arch rivals India and four other countries.
“It was after a long period of time that Pakistan played a good brand of hockey and we won a bronze medal after a gap of eight years in the Champions Trophy. It was good for our players and the team before the Asian Champions Trophy, and with the confidence of having finished third in Australia we hope to perform better here (in Qatar).”
Pakistan defeated India to win the bronze medal at the Champions Trophy in Australia.
Imran said the onus will be on his team-mates to give their best and not to be bogged down by the high expectations.
“We are coming here after some rest after the Champions Trophy and with the way we performed in Australia the confidence is high. We need to perform better here. We need to work hard and live up to the expectations which are very high after the bronze medal in Australia. People are expecting us to perform well in the Asian tournament too, so we will be under pressure and will have to give our best and have a good result in our favour.”
The Pakistan captain said all the teams taking part in Qatar tournament are balanced and the standard is pretty much the same.
“I cannot predict that we have come here for the gold, or we will take home the gold (medal), I would say all the teams are balanced and strong teams, and at these level, whichever teams which avails the chances and plays good on the day wins. So, we will try to give our best and try win the tournament.”
Pakistan which lost to India in the first edition of the Asian Champions Trophy in China will be determined to avenge the loss, but, Imran said Malaysia and Japan are equally tough teams.
“There was a lot of difference in the Indian team’s performance in Australia, where they played in the semi-final of the Champions Trophy and are coming to Qatar as an improved team. Malaysia did well recently in the Challenger Challenge and have lot of youngsters in the team and they also have a foreigner as coach, so all these things will count. So teams like Malaysia and Japan are capable of creating an upset.”
Imran said the team composition is perfect mixture of youth and experience and the plan is to have a pool of players who will duty for the country in the 2014 World Cup.
“In my view the Federation and coaches are working on a target to prepare the team for the 2014 World Cup. We have brought a few young boys to Qatar, and we also have some experienced players like Waseem Ahmed, Shakeel Abassi are with us. The youngsters performed well in the Champion’s Trophy and we have a good combination at the moment. But, after this Qatar tournament, and as we have a lot of time preparing for the world Cup, some more new boys will be selected and some older ones will be retained as we have to get the combination right for the 2014 World Cup.”
Imran said local coaches can still deliver the results with Akhtar Rasool proving his mettle.
“Akhtar has made a difference, if you look at the performance. At the London Olympics he did a good job, he worked hard in the areas we had our short comings and he has tried to rectify them and the results are before us. The Champions Trophy bronze we got is the fruits of the dedicated efforts he has put into his job.”
The Pakistan captain said artistic hockey, which Asian hockey is known for, can still find a place in the modern game dominated by the European style.
“Certainly we, India and Pakistan, can win titles with the artistic style of hockey. For us from India and Pakistan, those old players who played artistic hockey are our heroes. We can certainly carry forward our artistic hockey and adapt to the demands of the modern style of hockey. We can learn some things from the European style of play and change our style to suit the demands of the game.”
Imran said with Astroturf the focus has shifted on the fitness aspect.
“There are no such things as European or Asian style; it is now just (Astro) turf hockey. It is fitness that counts, if you are fit you can play whatever style of play you want to, if you are fit you can defeat anyone on any given day.”
Pakistan begin their campaign with a match against Oman tomorrow.
India finished last at the 2012 London Olympics while Pakistan came seventh at the Games.
Pakistan Squad: Imran Shah, Imran Butt, Syed Kashif Shah, Muhammad Imran (captain), Muhammad Rizwan Senior, Muhammad Tousiq, Fareed Ahmed, Rashid Mahmood, Muhammad Waqas (vice-captian), Shafqat Rasool, Abdul Haseem Khan, Ali Shan, Muhammad Ateeq, Waseem Ahmed, Muhammad Kashif Ali, Shakeel Abbasi, Muhammad Irfan, M Salman Hussain.
The Peninsula
