ISLAMABAD - The first phase of the training camp of seniors, juniors and female squash players concluded on Thursday here at Mushaf Ali Mir Squash Complex.
Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) established the camp for the upcoming mega events under the command of head coach Jamshed Gul and was assisted by Faheem Gul, Sajjad Khan, M Ilyas, while Punjab coach Gogi Allauddin also visited the camp and remained here for three days, but he kept away from coaching rather spend time with the PSF secretary.
Talking to The Nation on Thursday, head coach Jamshed Gul Khan said: “It was a very conducive camp for the players. Our junior team will depart on August 8 to participate in the World Junior Individual and Team Championship in Namibia. Although I am not accompanying the juniors as Gogi is given this task, yet I am quite confident the boy's will perform exceptionally. For the last three weeks or so, they were getting out of bounds training and that too with the best in the country. Juniors are very lucky as they get a chance to train alongside Pakistan's most capped and seasoned players like Farhan Mehboob, Aamir Atlas, Nasir Iqbal, Farhan Zaman, Danish Atlas, Maira Toor, Saima Shoukat, Muqaddas Ashraf and Zoya Khaild.”
“Pakistan's team chances heavily rest on the shoulders of Tayyab and Ali. If they play with their potential, it will be very hard to stop them to lift the title. This is the last chance for Tayyab and Ali in the juniors so they must sign off on a high. Both the youngsters are keen to play a memorable role in helping Pakistan win the team championship title alongside winning the individual title,” he added.
“The chances of Pakistan senior male team in the Asian Games are very bright. Though the boys didn’t get proper time get proper training yet I am very confident they will perform beyond the expectations and end up on podium,” he said.
“The PSF is doing a wonderful job by providing best possible facilities to both male and female players. I would like to take this opportunity and appreciate current federation management for giving equal treatment to both male and female players, which was not witnessed in the past. I am personally imparting training to female players, which paid immediate dividend, as girls succeeded in earning sixth position in the recently-concluded Asian Senior Team Championship in Hong Kong. I am hopeful they will take a further step and finish in top 3,” the head coach added.
“Our male team has a realistic chance of adding another gold in both individual and team event in Asian Games because it is very balanced team and I am very optimistic that the boys will not disappoint the nation and my coaching and will return as champions,” Jamshed concluded.
The second phase of the camp would start soon after the Eid holidays.