By The Pakistan men’s national hockey team arrived in Chennai for the Asian Champions Trophy late on Tuesday.
Pakistan, along with India, China, Malaysia, Korea and Japan will take part in the six-team tournament from August 3-12 in the Tamil Nadu capital.
“India-Pakistan should play each other more in hockey & cricket, only then both nations will keep moving ahead,” said Saqlain Muhammad, the team’s coach.
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“We are here to play positive hockey and it will be a great dress rehearsal ahead of the Asian Games,” he added.
The timing of the Asian Champions Trophy has been under scrutiny, given how hectic the calendar has now become ahead of the Asiad in China. Muhammad brushed off concerns ahead of the tournament.
“International hockey is like this. We’re happy to get time to play these countries as we will be facing these teams more or less in the Asian Games. It will give us all an opportunity to assess each other’s strengths and weaknesses,” he said.
The much-awaited India vs Pakistan clash is scheduled on August 9 at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium.
