LAHORE, Sep 6 (UNI): Star defender Sohail Abbas has made acomeback to the national squad ahead of the tour of Europe and the 2010 World Cup qualifiers.
The penalty corner speciallist has been struggling with his form in recent times but his return is expected to boost Pakistan's chances of qualifying for next year's World Cup.
The Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) announced the 17-member squad yesterday after completion of two-day trials at the National Hockey Stadium here.
Four additional players including senior stars Rehan Butt, Salman Akbar, Wasim Ahmad and Abbas Haider, who are already playing league hockey in Europe, would also be available during the tour if required.
Selection committee chairman Hassan Sardar asserted that the Pakistan team has the ability to beat the best teams in the world and should be able to qualify for the World Cup to be held in India next year.
He added that experienced midfielder Mohammad Saqlain was dropped as the former captain could not prove his fitness.
"Saqlain failed to prove his fitness and has been left out but Sohail Abbas has improved a lot and deserves his place in the squad," Sardar was quoted as saying by the 'Daily Times'.
Squad:(Goalkeeper) Nasir Ahmad, (Full Backs) Zeeshan Ashraf, Sohail Abbas and Muhammad Imran, (Halves) Muhammad Irfan, Fareed Ahmad, Sajjad Anwar, Zeeshan Ali, Sabtain Raza and Muhammad Rashid, (Forwards) Waqas Sharif, Shafqat Rasool, Abdul Haseem Khan, Muhammad Zubair, Akhtar Ali, Shakeel Abbasi and Tariq Aziz.