Pakistan baseball team set to compete in Arab Classic in Dubai

KARACHI: Pakistan’s baseball team will participate in the Baseball United Arab Classic in Dubai this month after receiving the NOC from the Pakistan Sports Board, the Pakistan Federation of Baseball confirmed.

Fakhar Shah, the federation’s secretary-general, said the board issued a no-objection certificate for Pakistan’s participation in the nine-team tournament, set for Nov. 7-10 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Teams from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Palestine, Afghanistan, Nepal, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE will compete. Group A comprises India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and the UAE, while Group B features Saudi Arabia, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Palestine.

The group winners will advance directly to the semifinals. The second- and third-placed teams in each group will play in the quarterfinals for the remaining semifinal spots. Ranked 36th, Pakistan are the highest-ranked South Asian team. India are ranked 70th.

Pakistan will face India on Friday, Nov. 8, following games against Bangladesh and the UAE on Thursday (tomorrow). Their final group game is against Afghanistan on Nov. 9.

The 14-member team, accompanied by four officials, is scheduled to depart Wednesday (today).

Shah said the tournament organisers have expanded the dugout capacity to 25, but will cover costs for only 18. “We’re hopeful the team will give a strong performance in the Arab Classic,” Shah said.

Squad: Muhammad Amjad Aslam, Muhammad Hussain, Muhammad Younas, Muhammad Zohaib, Wasim Akram, Syed Muhammad Shah, Musharaf Khan, Jibran Aman Murtaza, Syed Muhib Shah, Faisal Hayat, Hussain Imam Shah, Syed Ali Shah, Shahzad Ahmad, and Umair Imdad Bhatti.