Chinese table tennis coaches sought by Pakistan

Local officials want to train players for world championship.

KARACHI: The Pakistan Table Tennis Federation (PTTF) will hire two foreign coaches next month in order to prepare its players for the World Team Championship that takes place in March.

According to the PTTF Secretary Hafeezullah Khan Kakar, the federation has received the Pakistan Olympics Association’s (POA) approval to hire two Chinese coaches.

“We’ve received the POA’s approval for hiring the coaches and we’re insisting that we get them from China,” Kakar told The Express Tribune. “There are 50 coaches from which we can choose from so we’ll consider everyone carefully because we have three big events this year. Our players did well in the last world championship and qualified for the main round without any coach. This time we’re making sure they get every facility beforehand.”

Kakar also said that in order to prepare a strong team for the South Asian Junior Table Tennis Championship that is also due in March, a camp has been set up in Quetta, featuring 20 players. The eight best players will be selected for the event.

In addition, the country’s top eight players have been shortlisted to feature in the world championship, which include Ali Faisal, Asim Qureshi, Kashif Razzaq, Saleem Abbas, Yasir Khan, Salman Zirq and Mohammad Rameez Khan.

‘Foreign coach will groom talent’

Meanwhile, Qureshi welcomed the prospect of working with coaches from China.

“We need good strategists,” he said. “We have so much talent that’s going to waste. A foreign coach won’t only be helpful for the seniors but will also objectively assess the juniors and groom the upcoming talent.”

Published in The Express Tribune, January 15^th, 2012.