KARACHI: Former hockey captains have hailed Pakistan Hockey Federation’s (PHF) decision of giving the reins of national hockey team to senior pro Sohail Abbas ahead of the Olympic Games, scheduled to be held in London from July 27.

“Sohail, besides being a world record holder, has so many other honours in his name, he really deserved to be captain of the national team,” said former captain and forward Shakeel Abbasi while speaking to Dawn on Monday.

When asked whether he would prove to be a good leader or not, Shakeel was of the view that it depended on what kind of understanding he had with the boys.

“Sohail is a great guy, no doubt, but you need to make more of an effort in reaching out to your team and be available to them when needed,” he said. “Like I had a good rapport with both the senior and junior boys in the side when I was captain,” he added.

Shakeel also saw the forthcoming Sultan Azlan Shah Cup as a test for the new captain. “He is our short corner specialist. If he can keep up his performance and score in vital games while also taking all the criticism on the chin, he’ll do fine and the Pakistan hockey team will have an ideal captain,” he said.

Asked if he would play under Sohail if pardoned by the PHF Disciplinary Committee for featuring in the World Hockey Series, he said: “If I can play under Mohammad Imran, then why not under Sohail?”

Another frontrunner and former captain Rehan Butt, meanwhile, was also of the opinion that Sohail is a deserving man for the job.

“The PHF should have done this long ago instead of doing it now as a last option when there are no other seniors left for the job,” he said.

“God has been very kind to Sohail as being the highest goal scorer, he commands so much respect anyway. He will do great, I’m sure, provided he is given a strong team,” he added.

Pakistan’s Asian Games gold medal-winning hockey captain Zeeshan Ashraf also endorsed the decision to appoint Sohail as captain.

“Sohail has served hockey so well along the years, it just wouldn’t have been right to make some junior player the captain now with him still there,” he said.

“I’ve played with Sohail and we have been together since we used to be juniors. He is like my brother and I wish him the best of luck,” said the fullback.

Asked if captaincy could prove to be a burden for Sohail, Zeeshan just laughed off the matter. “He is the most experienced player in there. It shouldn’t be a problem for him.”