Pakistan captain Butt yet to receive visa for England leg of FIH Pro League

LAHORE: Pakistan men's hockey team's captain Ammad Shakeel Butt's participation in the England leg of the ongoing FIH Pro League has become uncertain as he has yet to receive a visa, sources told Geo Super on Friday.

The Green Shirts, placed at the bottom of the nine-team tournament's standings after losing each of their first 11 matches, are currently in Belgium, where they faced the host nation twice and Spain, whom they will face again on Saturday to conclude the leg.

Following the Belgium leg, Pakistan are due to travel on June 21 from Belgium to England, where they will be locking horns with the home side and arch-rivals India twice from June 23 to 27.

But, according to the insiders, the national team could be without their captain Butt, who could not acquire the England visa until Friday, with the sources adding that the reason for the hindrance was not yet revealed.

Consequently, in case of Butt's absence, defender Abu Bakar is likely to lead the Green Shirts in their two sets of matches against India and England, insiders claimed, adding that the decision regarding his replacement as a player will be made by the national selection committee and will later be announced by the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF).

Notably, the uncertainty around Butt's participation in the England leg adds to Pakistan's woes in the FIH Pro League, as they are already without two senior players, Hanan Shahid and Sufyan Khan, due to their respective injuries.

Pakistan squad for FIH Pro League

Goalkeepers: Waqar Ali, Ali Raza.

Defenders: Abu Bakar, Arbaz Ahmad and Mohammad Abdullah.

Midfielders: Nadeem Khan, Ammad Shakeel, Moin Shakeel, Hammad Anjum, Zakriya Hayat.

Forwards: Gjazanfar Ali, Mohammad Emmad, Rana Waleed, Afraz Khan, Rana Wahid, Abdue Rahman, Ahmad Nadeem and Arshad Liaquat.