ISLAMABAD - The 65th Air Marshal (R) Muhammad Noor Khan National Hockey Championship 2019 will commence at Abdul Sattar Edhi Hockey Stadium, Karachi from July 23, in which 20 teams will be seen in action.
Talking to The Nation from Karachi, Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) President Brig (R) Khalid Sajjad Khokhar said: “Total 20 teams will be in action during the championship, which are divided into four groups. Five matches will be played daily while the quarterfinals will be played on August 1. August 2 will be rest day while the semifinals and grand final will be held on August 4 (Sunday).
“We will decide about the cash prizes and other incentives in next couple of days, as we are expecting sizable sponsorship from the private sector. We are trying to conduct the tournament in a befitting manner. We have appointed Olympian Abdul Hanif Khan as tournament director as PHF is organising the championship,” he added.
“Long standing dispute of Karachi Hockey Association (KHA) has been amicably resolved after a long meeting with Provincial Minister Saeed Ghani as Syed Junaid Ai Shah is appointed as President of KHA and Haider Hussian secretary. Abu Zarr is the treasurer and Muhammad Asif associate secretary
“KHA is given six persons representation in the PHF General Council from Karachi instead of four in the past, which include Junaid Ali Shah, Haider Hussian, Kamran Ashraf, Shahid Ali Khan, Asif Ahmed Khan and Mubahsir Mukhtar. A
ll the six districts are made functional in Karachi. We have successfully negotiated with Olympians forum. I have met with Manzoor Junior and others and they all assured of working for the betterment and revival of Pakistan hockey. I also met with CM Sindh and also stakeholders and took them into confidence,” Khokhar concluded.
