“All the three are likely to join the camp by the end of this month,” PVF President Chaudhry Mohammad Yaqoob told ‘The News’. Naseer, the skipper, is playing in the Dubai league while Farooq Khan and Muneer Khan are playing for their respective clubs in Oman. Their leagues are in final stages.

 

“They are good players and their playing abroad is a plus point as other Pakistani players will learn from them during the training ahead of any international assignments,” the PVF official said.

 

Pakistan are scheduled to feature in the London Olympic Qualifiers in Italy from June 8-10.

 

Another PVF official said the world volleyball governing body (FIVB) is yet to inform the PVF about the other teams that will compete with Pakistan in those qualifiers. “The FIVB has told us that we will be informed about the other teams who will be competing with Pakistan next week,” the official said.

 

Pakistan’s preparatory camp for the vital assignment is underway in the federal capital for the last one and a half month.

 

After the PVF failed to get any response from Cuba regarding a coach, they are now on the verge of taking a coach from Iran. “We definitely need a coach by the end of this month and after Cuba did not give us any response our negotiations with Iran are underway and hopefully we will get a coach from them in a few days,” Yaqoob said.

 

“We may again get the services of Ali Reza Moameri,” the PVF official said.

 

Iranian coach Ali Reza Moameri was Pakistan’s coach when in 2008 the country won its first bronze medal in the 26-year history of the Asian Junior Championship.

But Ali Reza quit his job after his employers in Pakistan failed to increase his package.

 

A source in the PVF said that Ali Reza was unlikely to be brought as a coach as Pakistan would not be able to offer him his desired package. “We have also talked to the minister of the IPC and hopefully we will be able to hire a coach who will not only prepare a good team for the Italy qualifiers but will also help us prepare a lot for the South Asian Games,” Yaqoob, a former top police official, said. “The PSB normally offers us $2000 for a foreign coach but we will need more money for hiring a coach. If we are not given extra cash then we will have to get it from other means,” the official said.

 

To a query Yaqoob said that the PVF also plans to send the team to Iran for week-long training ahead of the qualifiers. “We plan to send the team to Tehran so that it could play at least five practice games against Iran’s national team or some better clubs there. And from there effort would be made to send the team to Italy for the qualifiers,” he said.