April 03, 2008	Thursday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 25, 1429

KARACHI, April 2: The four-member Tehran-bound Pakistan tennis team looks set to restore the country’s pride when it embarks from Lahore to the Iranian capital on Friday to compete in Asia-Oceania zone group III ties being held there on clay courts from April 9 to 13.

The squad which includes debutant Jibran Mohammedi will reach Lahore from Islamabad on Thursday evening. The players are currently undergoing training in the camp which has been setup at the PTF Tennis Academy.

The Pakistani-Canadian Jibran has stepped into the team on the basis of his performance in the trials. On the other hand, Asim Shafik has regained selection in the team after a layoff.

Both have come into the Pakistan team at the expense of Jalil Khan and Shahzad Khan.

Aisamul Haq and Aqeel Khan who were exempted from trials are the other two members of the team.

Eight countries including Pakistan are drawn in Asia-Oceania zone group III. Other nations are Iran, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Syria, Tajikistan, United Arab Emirates and Vietnam.

The teams will be divided into two pools. The top two nations from each pool advance to a further round-robin pool of four, from which the teams finishing first and second are promoted to Asia-Oceania group II in 2009.

The bottom two nations in each pool also advance to a further round-robin pool of four, from which the teams finishing third and fourth are relegated to Asia-Oceania zone group IV in 2009.

Team: Aisamul Haq, Aqeel Khan, Asim Shafik, Jibran Mohammedi. Official: Rashid Malik (non-playing captain).