Telenor Pakistan and Pakistan Blind Cricket Council (PBCC) jointly inaugurated the “Khuddar Pakistan Blind Cricket Talent Hunt” on 5th October 2009 at KPI stadium Karachi. The talent hunt is part of the efforts geared toward social inclusion of blind persons under Khuddar Pakistan program. The program will also help identify raw talent that can be trained for future prospects.

Through this program, Telenor Pakistan and PBCC are hoping to facilitate the blind with personal benefits such as fitness, stress relief, resilience, discipline, team work and leadership opportunities.

In his message at the inauguration, Director Corporate Communication and Responsibility, Telenor Pakistan Syed Hasnat Masood, said, “Cricket is one game that is a part of our national spirit. To us this also represents one of the best opportunity areas for mainstreaming the talent among blind community. The way our national blind cricket team has performed in the past truly epitomizes the true spirit of Khuddar Pakistan. Through this talent hunt, we are hoping to inspire belief in other members of blind community which will help them create a world of possibilities for themselves.”

Chairman PBCC, Syed Sultan Shah appreciated Telenor Pakistan’s support and said, “the event besides contributing to physical fitness, posture and mobility of the blind will also enable the society to see a non-stereotypical image of blind people which is not only positive but also action oriented.” He further added that “the other important aspect of the program is to seek the potential players which may represent Pakistan in future”. He trusted that Telenor Pakistan will continue its support for the promotion of the great game of Cricket.

The talent hunt will spread over two phases. The first phase from 5th October 2009 – 24th October 2009 will be covering northern, central and southern region of the country.

Also, a winter training camp will be set up by PBCC by the end of December 2009 for the training of the selected students from phase one of the talent hunt. These students will be trained by national level coaches and physical trainers. Representatives from PBCC will visit public and private institutes of the visually handicapped and will select a minimum of 40 students for the training camp.

“Telenor Khuddar Pakistan” initiative aims to create dignified opportunities for Persons with Disabilities and become the most disabled-friendly organization in Pakistan in terms of employment, service, and community support. Telenor Pakistan will integrate persons with disabilities fully into the organization, create awareness about their abilities, and include them fully into everyday life with the help of assistive technologies.

Telenor Pakistan the largest cellular network of the Northern Areas is sponsoring, for the third time in a row, the renowned Shandur Polo Festival 2009 being held on 7th- 9th July, 2009. More than 18,000 local and international visitors are expected to witness the festival.

Emphasizing the importance of the event Regional Director North Telenor Pakistan Faisal Khan Sadozai said, “We have a special affiliation towards the Northern Areas of Pakistan, as Telenor Pakistan is the largest service provider in the region. We feel that our partnership for Shandur Polo Festival is natural considering the passion and excellence that the Shandur Polo Festival represents.”

The three day polo tournament is being organized by Gilgit and Chitral Polo Clubs, the local administration and Telenor Pakistan. It will be played on top of Shandur Pass on the border of Gilgit and Chitral, around 3,700 meters above sea level. The event marks the annual rivalry between the polo teams of the two cities. Supporters of both sides travel long distances from the remote parts of the region, to watch the thrilling game. Like previous year, this year’s festival will also offer Tug-of-war, Para-Gliding, Motorized Gliding and folk dances along with a fascinating insight into the lifestyle of the people of this region.

Telenor Pakistan has made special arrangements for capacity enhancement in the region by installation of Cell on Wheels (COW) during Shandur Polo Festival. This will help accommodate the increased cellular traffic and ensure uninterrupted communications during the festival. Telenor Pakistan is the only service provider offering services at the heights of Shandur.

Pakistan Telecommunication Company Ltd announced to give a reward of Rs 3 million to the winner of 20-20 World cup Pakistan Cricket Team.

As per details, a ceremony was arranged in the honor of the Pakistan Cricket team here on Thursday in the presence of Chairman Pakistan Cricket Board Ijaz butt; President PTCL Mr. Walid Irshaid presented the cheque to the Captain Pakistan Cricket team Younis khan.

President PTCL Walid Irshaid, while congratulating team on their outstanding performance said that this victory is an inpiration for the whole nation and PTCL would continue its un-interrupted support for the development of cricket in the country.

Captain Younis khan and Shahid Afridi were presented Rs 0.5 million each, along with an amount of Rs 2 million for the whole team. Senior officials of PTCL Mr. Naveed Saeed, Mr. Mazhar Hussain, Mr. Muhammad Nehmatullah and Mr. Ali Qadir Gilani were also present on the occasion.

The National Press Club XI defeated the Pakistan Telecommunication Limited-XI in very close encounter by 4 runs in the exhibition cricket match played at Marghazar Cricket Ground.

National Press Club (NPC) and Islamabad Gymkhana Cricket Club with the collaboration of PTCL are organizing Inter-Media cricket tournament which commence from May 24th.

According to details, the National Press Club-XI won the toss and elected to bat first and scored 178 runs for 5 in allotted 20 overs. For NPC Afzal Javed batting aggressively scored 69 of 27 balls with seven big sixes and remained not out, Sohail Iqbal made 51 runs including two sixes and seven fours, while Khalid Qayum 18, Farooq Faisal 4 and Jahangir Minhas made6 runs respectively.

From PTCL side, Qasim Jan, Manan Zafar and Ansar Bhatti took one wicket each.

Chasing the target, PTCL started innings carefully and it needed 11 runs in the last over, however, it could make only 7 runs and made total 174 at the loss of eight wickets in 20 overs. From PTCL side, Arif Ashraf with 63 runs, Munir Ashraf with 27 and Atif with 12 were the main scorer. Jehangir Minhas took 3-28 and Afzal Javed 2-31 for the NPC XI while Aslam Dogar and Malik Tahir took one wicket each for NPC.

At the end of the match, Chairman of Islamabad Gymkhana Cricket Club Mohsin Jamil Beig and PTCL Executive Vice President Marketing Communications Ali Qadir Gillani being Chief Guest on the occasion distributed prizes among the players. Afzal Javed was declared man of the match for his all round performance while Arif Ashraf of PTCL was declared best batsman and Jahangir Minhas of NPC as best bowler.

PTCL XI consists of Ali Qadir Gilani,,Ansar Mahmood Bhatti, Manan Zafar, Arif Ashraf, Munir Ashraf, Talah, Imran, Atif, Murad, Ashfaq, Qasim Jan and Ejaz Khatak.

The PTCL Inter-Media cricket tournament under the auspices of National Press Club and Islamabad Gymkhana will be started from May 24.

Sohail Iqbal, Chief Organizer of the tournament said on Thursday that an organizing committee has been constituted for holding successful championship, which comprised National Press Club president Tariq Chaudhry, Secretary National Press Club Afzal But and Mushtaq Minhas, RIUJ president Sheharyar Khan, secretary sports committee Nationla Press Club Afzal Javed, Ansar Bhatti of PTCL and Abbas Shabir.

He said that the tournament, to be played by the courtesy of PTCL, would be played at Murghazar Cricket Ground and MNA hostel Cricket ground.

The organizer said that teams from Geo TV, Aaj TV, ARY One World, Samaa TV, Express News, Dawn News, Waqt News, Royal TV, Online, APP, Sana News, The Nation and Nawa-i-Waqt, The News, Daily Times, Khabrain, Ausaaf, Express, Dawn, Jinnah, Journalists-IX, Combined-IX and teams of National Press Club would participate in the event.

He said the draws of the event would be held on May 18 while before the start of the event, friendly match between PTCL and National Press Club-IX would be played.

PTCL in collaboration with Etisalat UAE has decided to take the initiative to revitalize and stimulate the cricketing circumstances in Pakistan. PTCL is determined to mesmerize the local and international audiences at the forthcoming Pakistan-Australia series in Dubai.

This was affirmed by the President & CEO PTCL, Mr. Walid Irshaid in a meeting with Pakistani Cricket Captain Younis Khan.  Younis Khan visited the PTCL HQ on the invitation of president & CEO PTCL.

Mr. Walid Irshaid reiterated its support for the national team. He congratulated and praised Younis khan on his recent triple century against Sri Lanka and passed on the good wishes for the forthcoming Pakistan-Australia series. Mr. Walid Irshaid also expressed grief and concern at the attack on Sri Lankan team in Lahore. Both notables also discussed matters of mutual interest.

Mr. Walid Irshaid affirmed that PTCL in association with Etisalat is enthusiastically planning to develop a lasting relationship with Pakistani cricket and would soon go on board the plan, accordingly. Mr. Walid Irshaid said the decision is of strategic importance as very recently, Etisalat UAE also announced its collaboration with the Barcelona’s foot ball club; commonly known as Barca. Etisalat’s support for the Pakistan’s National Cricket team would yield mutually favorable results.

Younis Khan expressed gratitude to the Management of Ptcl and Etisalat for their well wishes and anticipated support.

The Annual Indigo Golf Tournament organized by Mobilink, kicked off today with more than 200 participants.

Mustafa Peracha, Vice President Customer Services, Mobilink at the prize distribution ceremony while recognizing the golfing talents of the participants also stated, “The Mobilink Indigo Golf Tournament has now become an annual event that sparks an unprecedented interest among our Club Indigo Family Members and provides an opportunity to Mobilink Indigo patrons who represent country’s top tier corporate sector to informally socialize and exchange views through the game of golf.”

This year, the tournament also saw a significant number of female players participate in the event, showing the growing popularity of the sport in Pakistan. Winners of Net & Gross categories were rewarded with attractive prizes Adnan Rafi and Khurram Mehdi were the winner of this tournament.

This Mobilink Annual Golf event is being organized in three cities. The first tournament was held in Karachi with the second tournament to be held in Lahore and the final tournament in Islamabad.  For the Karachi event, Mobilink’s Brand Ambassador Waseem Akram also participated in the Golf tournament.

Mobilink has been instrumental in pioneering such events and activities to promote sports and culture across the country. At the forefront of their noteworthy initiatives is the ‘Mobilink Hunt for Heroes’ talent search. The entire U-15 cricket squad that represented Pakistan at the U-15 World Cup in West Indies was uncovered by the Mobilink Hunt for Heroes programme.

Mobilink has announced support for the Pakistan-Sri Lanka One-day and Test Series beginning on January 20 as co-sponsor of the tournament.

Speaking on this occasion Bilal Munir Sheikh, Vice President Marketing, Mobilink, said, “Mobilink has a long standing commitment to the game and a very strong affiliation with PCB. We are delighted to extend our support to this long awaited international cricket series aimed at refreshing our passion for cricket. We will continue to provide a platform to young and budding cricketers at the grass root level as we have been doing through our Mobilink Hunt for Heroes Programme.”

Designed to find exceptional talent from all parts of the country including the remote and far flung areas with the help of specialized PCB coaches, Mobilink Hunt for Heroes Cricket program attracted over 12,000 young and budding cricketers from 52 districts throughout Pakistan last year. The entire Pakistan Under 15 team that participated in the Under 15 World Cup in the West Indies has been unearthed by Mobilink Hunt for Heroes. The second edition of the programme, initiated in August 2007, has already seen a participation of almost 20,000 Cricket enthusiasts.

With a gap of 16 months, the Sri Lanka series is a major cricket series in Pakistan after hosting South Africa in September 2007. The two teams will be playing the first one day international in Karachi on Tuesday the 20th of January, 2009. The second one day will be played on the 21st of January, again in Karachi. The third One-day will be played in Lahore, on Saturday the 24th January. The one-day Matches will be followed by a test series featuring two test matches, the first test match will begin on 2nd February in Lahore and the second test match will begin in Karachi on Wednesday 22nd February, 2009.

Around 1,500 cricket enthusiasts participated at the Mobilink Hunt for Heroes sessions held simultaneously in Lahore, Multan and Peshawar organized by Mobilink in association with Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). After a rigorous ten-day exercise including trainings from PCB coaches and practice matches, 15 players were short listed each for Multan and Peshawar regions and 20 players from Lahore.

Commenting on the participants at the Multan Stadium, Colonel Mansoor, Regional Director (Multan), PCB, shared, “The enthusiasm of these youngsters is overwhelming. There is no dearth of talent in the country and we are grateful to Mobilink for collaborating with us to uncover it from every nook and corner of the country.”

According to Khurram Mahboob, Brand Manager Strategic Initiatives at Mobilink, “We all have at one point fantasized about playing professional cricket and Mobilink Hunt for Heroes gives thousands of cricket enthusiasts the opportunity to realize this dream. The primary objective of this first-of-its-kind program is to produce well-rounded, physically fit and skilled players to represent Pakistan at the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011.”

Similar trials were also conducted for cricket enthusiasts in Batgram, Bostan, Charsadda, Dera Allayar, Dera Mohammad Jamali, Hakalzai, Huramzai, Jafferabad, Jhal Magsi, Karbal, Khanozai, Kohistan, Mansehra, Mirpurkhas, Mithi (Tharparkar), Naseerabad, NausheroFeroz, Nawabshah, Nowshera, Pishin, Sanghar, Umerkot and Ziarat simultaneously. Open trials of the Mobilink Hunt for Heroes will be conducted in Burewala, Gawadar, Kohat, Peshawar, Shikarpur, Sialkot, Sibi, Sukkur and Swat from 4th November, 2008 and will also be conducted for Faisalabad, Multan, Rawalpindi, Sialkot and FATA regions in coming months.

After the first phase, these youngsters will be divided into twelve regional teams who will fight for the top honors in the “Mobilink Hunt for Heroes Tournament 2008-09”. Phase II will comprise of six weeks of physical training and tactical awareness of the final thirty-six short-listed youngsters at the prestigious National Cricket Academy in Lahore.

Designed to find exceptional talent from all parts of the country including the remote and far flung areas with the help of specialized PCB coaches, Mobilink Hunt for Heroes Cricket program attracted over 12,000 young and budding cricketers from 52 districts throughout Pakistan last year. The entire squad of the Pakistan Juniors Under-15 team that played in the Under-15 tournament in the West Indies has been unearthed by Mobilink Hunt for Heroes.

Telenor Pakistan will take a group of lucky draw winners to witness matches of the all time favorite Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Champions League 2008-2009 in Europe. In collaboration with Ten Sports, this will be a first of its kind initiative where a winner will be announced every month until the end of the UEFA Champions League in May 2009. Winners will be given an opportunity to visit various cities in Europe to see the matches throughout the season.

Considering the growing popularity of the game of football in Pakistan, the initiative is likely to attract both young and old. Djuice customers can answer a simple question-of-the-month on Ten Sports and become eligible to participate in the lucky draw by spending a credit amount of Rs. 250 from their connections. The question can be retrieved by SMSing UCL to 1010 and answered by sending UCL to 1010. SMS charges are Rs. 5 + tax.

Chief Marketing Officer, Telenor Pakistan, Lars Christian Iuel commenting on the campaign said, “We, at Telenor Pakistan feel that football’s popularity has grown through the recent years in Pakistan, especially with the youth. Through this initiative Djuice, as a premier youth brand of Pakistan wishes to not only encourage healthy activities but also provide an opportunity for our customers to witness their dream-teams performing live! We wish the lucky winners a happy visit and exciting games.”

Billions watch the UEFA Champions League all around the world through TV and both paid and unpaid live web-streaming. In several countries in Europe, Asia and North America, the matches are also streamed on cell phone screens while it remains the most viewed club level football event all around the world. The UEFA Champions League final in May 2008 was the first ever final between two English teams Manchester United and Chelsea, won by the former. It enjoyed a record global viewer ship in the U.S, Latin America, Africa, the Pacific Rim, Asia and Canada, totaling over 115 countries and over 185 million households including Pakistan.

Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Barcelona and Real Madrid remain the hot favourites in Pakistan. Interestingly, Zeeshan Rehman is the only Pakistani origin player to play for a European club Fulham. He is considered to be a hope for the Pakistani youth wishing to play the game at the highest level.

For further information, please visit djuice.com.pk.