The participants of national training hockey camp on its second day undergo intensive training here at the National Hockey Stadium on Tuesday. The camp is being held as part of the preparations for Asia Cup, to be held in Malaysia in August. Pakistan needs to win in the event in order to qualify for the 2014 World Cup.
Under head coach Akhtar Rasool Pakistan already lost the opportunity of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup after finishing seventh in the eight-nation World Hockey League (WHL) in Malaysia early this month. National hockey team captain Mohammad Imran expressed optimism for entry in the World Cup by winning the Asia Cup. During the current camp, he said the players would work hard to remove the errors they committed in the WHL. The players know that they had no room to relax as they would be making the final bid to qualify for the 2014 World Cup in Malaysia next month.
Akhtar Rasool also acknowledged that the Asia Cup was a challenge for him and he would leave no stone unturned in preparing his charges for the all-important competition. He said, "Although the contest at the Asia Cup will be tough in the presence of opponent teams like India and South Korea besides hosts Malaysia, I hope my boys will not repeat the mistakes they committed in the WHL quarter-final against South Korea."
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