March 29, 2007	Thursday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 9, 1428

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KARACHI, March 28: About 125 players including the last year’s Doha Asian Games squad will assemble at Hockey Club of Pakistan on April 1 at 9.00am for short-listing of next month’s Azlan Shah Cup training camp. The players have been selected by newly-appointed team manager Islahuddin Siddiqui and other selectors during the qualifying rounds of the ongoing national championship.

Islah, who will be the camp commandant of the training camp which starts on April 5 at HCP, has planned to short-list about 35 players for the final national training camp for Azlan Shah Cup in Malaysia.

Islah says that while the best talent has been selected during the national championship qualifiers, the team players who participated at Doha Games last December will not be invited directly for the national camp. This time around the national players will have to go through short-listing for the national camp.

Pakistan gave a pathetic performance at the Games and were even beaten 2-1 by minnows China in the semi-finals following which green shirts had to settle for bronze.

The invitational tournament in Malaysia, which is an annual feature, will be the first activity of Pakistan team since Doha debacle.