0
Pakistan will meet Argentina in the opening match of 21st Sultan Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament at Sultan Azlan Shah Stadium in Ipoh, Malaysia on May 24.
The prestigious tournament, which will run until June 3, will present Pakistan with their last opportunity to test their mettle ahead of the Olympic Games which take place in London from July 27 to August 12.
Pakistan will likely field a young-looking squad in the event after senior players Shakeel Abbasi and Rehan Butt breached the code of conduct of the Pakistan Hockey Federation by featuring in the un-sanctioned World Series Hockey in India.
The tournament will be played on round-robin league format, culminating in positional playoffs and the final.
Apart from Shakeel and Rehan, former Pakistan captains Waseem Ahmed, Zeeshan Ashraf, Imran Khan, Imran Warsi, Adnan Maqsood and Tariq Aziz are representing different teams in WSH.
Khan, who was a member of the Pakistan side which last won the Olympics hockey tournament at Los Angles in 1984, said that they will be selecting the best possible side from the available players.
“The performance of the youngsters in Ipoh will help us in selecting the best team for the London Olympics,” he said.
Argentina, Great Britain, India, South Korea, New Zealand, Pakistan and hosts Malaysia will be taking part in the 11-day championship with the green-shirts taking on traditional-rivals India on May 31.
