If Zimbabwe arrive in Pakistan next week, it will mark the return of international cricket to the country after six years.
Cricket is Pakistan’s most popular sport, and the hope is that the short series with Zimbabwe will be the first step on a long road back to host international sports again.
How long and difficult that road is, and how dependent it is on the security situation in the country, will be apparent this weekend at Al Qattara Stadium in Al Ain.
The city is hosting Group B of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Under 23 Championship qualification, which was originally scheduled to be held in March in Lahore. The competition was postponed and moved to the UAE after bomb blasts at two churches in Lahore killed 15 people on March 15.
Turkmenistan has pulled out from the group, but Jordan, Kuwait and Kyrgyzstan join “hosts” Pakistan in determining which team – or potentially two, if the runner-up does well enough – qualifies for the AFC U23 Championship in Qatar next January.
The top three teams from Qatar will qualify for next year’s Rio Olympics.
Pakistan, who arrived in the UAE yesterday morning, are unlikely to get that far. At No 173, their senior side are the lowest-ranked side in the group behind Jordan at 103, Kuwait at 126 and Kyrgyzstan at 153.
The Pakistan players will be further hampered in their quest by not playing at home.
It is a feeling their cricketing counterparts know well; the UAE has been their home for the past five years.
“It is a change for us,” said Saddam Hussain, the captain.
“We would’ve had a really good advantage at home, in front of our own crowds and supporters. That makes a real difference.
“Every team has a huge advantage when they play at home, when their people come to see them to support them.
“Players really respond to that, they get ready to sacrifice 200 per cent instead of 100 per cent for them, to give more and more.”
They will also miss the services of striker Kaleemullah, their most prominent player. He flew to San Francisco last week to trial with Sacramento Republic FC, who play in the United Soccer League, which is effectively third-division football in the United States.
Kaleemullah is the only home-grown Pakistani player to have played abroad.
He signed up and excelled with Kyrgyzstan’s FC Dordoi before going to the US and has been an integral member of the U23 side, playing in the Asian Games and starring in a famous win over India last year.
Reports suggest he is not in the squad because of differences with Mohammed Shamlan Al Mubarak, Pakistan’s Bahraini coach. This tournament is the last assignment for Al Mubarak, who worked as an assistant coach for Pakistan in 2006.
In March, he had been critical of a “lack of vision” in Pakistan football, but this week he sounded more content.
There were deep problems, he said, but there was also talent.
“I have gotten good respect and good support. There is good talent but not good-quality training,” he said.
“They need local coaches, coaches you can take young players to. There need to be more competitions, more leagues, as well.
“But I am happy. I want to give them a good result before I leave.”
Hussain said Al Mubarak had a positive impact on Pakistan, an assessment borne out by some results of the senior side.
They reached the final of the Philippines Peace Cup in 2013 and beat India 2-0 in Bangalore, sealing a 2-1 series win. They also defeated Afghanistan 2-0 in February.
Pakistan begin with a game against Jordan tomorrow and Hussain said the team, who had continued on with their preparation despite the venue change and postponement, were ready.
“Nobody rested,” he said. “The players are fit. The coach has worked hard with us. I have good expectations from this week.”
Big name no burden for Saddam Hussain
Many Pakistani athletes are named after prominent Arab leaders.
Yasir Arafat, for instance, has forged a pretty successful cricket career, having played for Pakistan before becoming a freelance Twenty20 player.
So the fact the captain of the Pakistan U23 football side is named Saddam Hussain is not unusual.
Hussain will lead the side this weekend in Al Ain in a qualifying tournament for next year’s Asian Under 23 Championship in Qatar.
He was named after the former president of Iraq.
“My grandfather really liked Saddam Hussain, so he gave me the name,” he said. “I was young, I had no idea about the significance of the name. When I got a sense of who Saddam was, then I realised.
“But I never thought of changing it. I like my name. In most Muslim countries it is OK, but when we travel in European countries maybe they often get a little surprised by the name. It’s normal, though. I’m used to it.”
Hussain is one of three Pakistani players who have left Pakistan and played abroad.
He plays for FC Dordoi of Kyrgyzstan alongside Mohammed Adil. Kaleemullah, Pakistan’s leading player, also played for the club before he went on trial last week with Sacramento Republic FC of the United Soccer League, the US third-tier league.
The three were signed by a former coach of Pakistan, the Serbian Zavisa Milosavljevic, who is at Dordoi.
