Pakistan praises inclusion of its players in Hockey India League

Pakistan hailed the inclusion of its players in the Hockey India League (HIL) which is a good sign for re-establishing sports between the two uneasy neighbors.

As many as nine of the 15 players who came under the hammer at Sunday’s HIL auctions were eagerly grabbed by the five franchises for the league that will be held in January-February in five Indian cities, says Indian media reports.

Delhi Wave Riders bought Mohammad Rizwan Sr ($26,000) and Mohammad Rizwan Jr $10,000) while Mumbai Magicians bought Mahmood Rashid ($41,000), Fareed Ahmad ($21,000), Mohammad Tousiq ($27,000) and Imran Butt ($5,500).

Jaypee Punjab Warriors got Kashif Shah ($9,500) while Ranchi bid for Shafaq Rasool ($10,000) and Mohammed Irfan ($5,000).

Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) secretary Asif Bajwa welcomed the move of HIL franchises and hoped the league will benefit the players in the sub-continent.

Reports said, “It was a great feeling to see Pakistani hockey players being bought by HIL franchises. I congratulate Hockey India for the initiative. It will definitely improve the sporting ties between the two countries.”

Since the 2008 Mumbai attacks, cricket remained off-limits for Pakistanis but hockey was not. Pakistani cricketers were a part of the first IPL in 2008 but since then they stayed away as sporting ties between the two countries snapped.

Pakistan, however, traveled to India for the 2011 World Cup semi-final. A bilateral limited-overs series will be played later this month for the first time since 2007.

Pakistan hockey team also played the 2010 World Cup and the Commonwealth Games in Delhi while six Pakistanis were a part of the unsanctioned World Series Hockey (WSH) held earlier this year.

Top players like former Pakistan skipper Zeeshan Ashraf, legendary Shakeel Abbassi, star forward Rehan Butt, Adnan Maqsood, Waseem Ahmed and Tariq Aziz were a part of the WSH.

Bajwa believes that HIL will change the face of world hockey. He observed, “HIL could change the face of Indian and world hockey. The amount of money players will earn in a period of four weeks is unheard in international hockey. The sub-continent is now the focal point for world hockey. I think both India and Pakistan will be benefit from it.”

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Posted by Web Desk on Dec 18 2012. Filed under Pakistan, Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.