KARACHI: The efforts of Karachi Hockey Association (KHA) for the restoration of departmental teams bore fruitful results when the Karachi Development Authority (KDA) announced to hold open trials at the Customs Sports Complex on April 22 at 4pm.

The date and other relevant details were finalised when a KHA delegation called on the Director General of the KDA Nasir Abbas in his office on Tuesday.

The KHA delegation includes Samiullah, Gulfraz Khan and Haider Hussain.

The KDA will become the first department of the city to revive their hockey team after more then quarter-of-a-century.

Besides the financial institutions, the KDA, Pak PWD, Karachi Port Trust (KPT), Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) and the House Building Finance Corporation (HBFC) disbanded their teams long ago.

A number of teams that now ceased to exists is said to be a key factor of national games falling standard globally.

Since assuming charge, the incumbent KHA officials have been making concerted efforts to revive the departmental teams besides restoring activities in all nook and corner of the city.

During the meeting, the KDA chief gave a go ahead for holding the open trials and reviving the team at the earliest. He also directed the Director Sports of the KDA Dr Shahid Mehboob to coordinate with the KHA in this regard.

The KHA has formed a selection committee headed by former Olympian Samiullah to watch the trials and select the team on merit.

Other members of the committee are former Olympian Hanif Khan, ex-international Jamil Ahmed Khan, KHA secretary Haider Hussain and KHA official Talat Mahmood.

The KHA delegation also presented a hockey stick to the KDA director general on the occasion.

Published in Dawn, April 19th, 2017