“We received an invitation from India to participate in the event and decided to send the team there for the purpose since it is an important regional event,” Pakistan Volleyball Federation (PVF) Secretary Major Afzal told Dawn on Tuesday.

He said since top teams like Iran, Kazakhstan and India would be competing, too, it would be a tough competition, which would help the Pakistan side prepare itself for the Asian Games to be held in China in November. Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Maldives are the other three teams participating in the said event.

Pakistan hosted the last edition of the regional event in Islamabad in which it took the fourth position. The first edition was held in Sri Lanka where Pakistan had finished second.

He said that participation in the Al-Rashid tournament, a regular event organised by the Dubai Volleyball Association, scheduled in October, would also provide an opportunity for raising a formidable team for the Asian Games.