LAHORE, May 20: Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) has confirmed availability of six players for the first-ever Pakistan’s Super League to be organized in September and also proposed a 10-Test series on home and away basis. Pakistani players including Sohail Abbas and Waseem Ahmad had played the first Indian hockey league held last year. Following suit, the PHF also decided to introduce the league in Pakistan with six teams participating in the first edition.
The name of the six Indian players would be conveyed by the IHF who will play for each participating team.
IHF is also willing to hold 10-Test match series. The first phase was proposed to be held in Pakistan and the second leg in India.
According to the proposal, last match of the series should be held in Chennai, India, before the start of the Champions Trophy there. Chennai will hold the Champions Trophy in December.
The final decision will be taken by the president of the PHF. Negotiations with three Indian TV channels were also held to telecast the matches of the league live.
Our Sports Reporter adds from Islamabad: The proposal of the Test series has initially come from the IHF who had wanted five Tests to be played in Pakistan and as many in their country.
India had suggested Bhopal, Chandigarh, Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai as the venues for their share of matches. Pakistan and India were also involved in a Test series last year.
PHF is to launch the league on September 10 which will have all matches under lights. The proposed names of the teams are Sindh Qalanders, Baloch Lions, Frontier Falcons, Shan-e-Punjab, Kashmir Cavaliars and Capital Dynamos.
There are going to be good financial incentives with each player appearing in the league being paid Rs15,000 plus full boarding. The Man of the Match award will be worth Rs10,000 while the Man of the Tournament is to take home Rs150,000. The competition’s Best Goalkeeper and the Highest Scorer are to pocket Rs100,000 each.
The winning team will have their hands full with an award of Rs two million, while the losing finalists scoop up Rs1.5 million. A third place finish is to fetch Rs 1.2 million followed by awards of Rs one million and 0.75 million.
The PHF intends inviting President Gen. Pervez Musharraf, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and provincial governors and chief ministers to witness the matches.