LAHORE - The involvement and participation of Pakistani women in mainstream cricket continues to increase as four women have registered for a three-day ACC Level-I Women Coaching Course being held here from October 17-19.

Women registered for the first step in future coaching roles include Abbottabad’s Atika Sabir Khan, Lahore’s Fareeha Mahmood, Shehla Bibi from Wah Cantt and Tasleem Bano from the Gaizer district of Gilgit-Baltistan.

Fareeha is a current Pakistan international, who featured in three T20Is against Sri Lanka in March 2018. Other participants in the course, first of its kind, include representatives from Afghanistan, Bahrain, Bhutan, Hong Kong, Iran, Kuwait (two), Malaysia, Maldives, Oman (two) and United Arab Emirates.

National Cricket Academy (NCA) Senior General Manager Ali Zia, also a course instructor course, said: “We have already organised two Level-2 courses in the past. The feedback given by the ACC to the PCB was commendable and it was marked as the best-ever organised so far.

“There is a certain standard set for the course, the participants will gain great benefit from the course, as it will provide them with an opportunity to go back to their countries and train young girls,” he said and added: “The ACC’s Test playing countries are always there in development of the associate countries and will continue to play an active role in future.”

ACC’s Events and Development Manager, Sultan Rana, said: “The ACC is working with its member countries in the development of the game in the region. The ACC takes pride in hosting its inaugural women’s level-I course at the NCA. The initiative was taken in the ACC’s Development Committee meeting, which was chaired by Chairman PCB Mr Ehsan Mani.”

The participants include Atika Sabir Khan (Pakistan), Awatif Alqallaf (Kuwait), Dechen Wangmo (Bhutan), Elnaz Parvin (Iran), Emylia Eliani Binti Md Rahim (Malaysia), Fareeha Mahmood (Pakistan), Khadija Khalil (Kuwait), Mariyam Zoona (Maldives), Meera Bhanushali (Oman), Nawal Tahir Muhammad (Bahrain), Shamila Chathurika Ananda (UAE), Shanzzen Shahzad (Hong Kong), Shazia Rahman Zazai (Afghanistan), Shehla Bibi (Pakistan), Tasleem Bano (Pakistan) and Vaishali Jesrani (Oman).