PESHAWAR: Pakistan Cricket Board Level-III Coach and Cricket Coordinator for Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Hajra Sarwar said on Thursday that the open trials to select women cricketers in three different categories including U-19, Emerging, and Senior will be held on August 29 at Maazullah Khan Cricket Academy, inside Qayyum Sports Complex Peshawar.
Hajra Sarwar is the only female coach with such high qualifications, and she got her coaching certification from Australia. She’s now working with the Pakistan Cricket Board for the Peshawar Region. She mentioned that everything is ready for these trials. She also requested the Director General of Sports in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa to arrange accommodations for female cricketers who will come from different places for the trials.
This is a great opportunity for women cricketers to join the trials and show their skills. Hajra Sarwar highlighted that the Pakistan Cricket Board is not offering contracts to women cricketers even at the local levels, and this needs to be changed.
These trials are a chance for women cricketers to be selected for Under-19 and Senior teams in the Peshawar Region. It’s part of the Pakistan Cricket Board’s effort to find new talent in women’s cricket. Similar trials will be held in eight cricket academies across Pakistan from August 23 to 31.
Hajra Sarwar explained that the trials will be overseen by the National Selection Committee, which includes former Test cricketer Saleem Jaffar, and former international cricketers Asmavia Iqbal and Marina Iqbal. The trials are for three groups: Under-19 (for players born on or after September 1, 2004), Emerging Team, and Seniors.
These trials will help identify talented players for Pakistan Emerging and Pakistan Under-19 teams. The Pakistan Emerging team will play against the West Indies Emerging team at home in October, and the Pakistan Under-19 team will participate in a triangular event with Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in January 2024.
Recently, the Pakistan Cricket Board awarded contracts to 74 women cricketers, including three from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. This is a positive step for women’s cricket. Hajra Sarwar believes that these trials will bring in new talented players for future events.
Hajra Sarwar, who comes from District Swabi, expressed her excitement about upcoming women’s cricket events and believes that these trials will help find great talent for the national teams.
The trials will take place in eight academies across Pakistan, including Maazullah Khan Cricket Academy in Peshawar, Mohammad High Performance Centre in Karachi, Inzamam-ul-Haq High Performance Centre in Multan, Women Sports Stadium in Bahawalpur, Kinnaird College for Women in Lahore, Pindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi/Islamabad, Abbottabad Stadium in Abbottabad, Bugti Stadium in Quetta, and Qayyum Stadium in Peshawar.” —APP
