ISLAMABAD -  Pakistani-origin Australian Mehfooz Ali Khan has said that Peshawar Zalmi will organise a mega event in the name of ‘Global Zalmi World Cup’ in Dubai next year.

Talking to The Nation from Melbourne, Mahfooz, who is Peshawar Zalmi representative, said: “Peshawar Zalmi will bring teams from different countries to promote Pakistan culture, love, peace and harmony, while Melbourne Zalmi will also brining youth from Australia to feature in this World Cup.”

Peshawar Zalmi has started Talent Hunt in Melbourne to find new talent to give boost to Pakistan cricket. Mahfooz said the PSL franchise Peshawar Zalmi growing up fast all over the world and gaining huge popularity in places like London, USA, Canada and Australia. “From the very first day, Peshawar Zalmi is doing a fantastic job to portray softer image of the country across the globe.”  “We recently held open trials in Melbourne and got overwhelming response, as youngsters came in huge numbers from Pakistan and other countries to showcase their talent with the Melbourne Zalmi team, he said. “After hectic trails, 30 players were shortlisted and training camp and some local tournaments were organised to polish the Melbourne Zalmi for the T20 format, as overseas students and players are usually busy in studies and jobs but guys are very crazy and excited to play for Melbourne Zalmi,” he added. Interestingly, Melbourne Zalmi registered impressive victory in their match in domestic event in Melbourne which gave huge moral support to young players.

The Australian representative of Zalmi said: “The Zalmi World Cup will be organised every year on same patron and the teams will participate from different countries. Pakistan has been fighting against terrorism from the past decade which inflicted huge pain on youth, who are deprived of watching international cricket at their home soil. But under Javed and Shahid Afridi’s mission of bringing international back to Pakistan, we are doing our best to contribute as much as we can.”

Mahfooz said Melbourne Zalmi would announce its final squad after final training session. “Local people from Melbourne supporting the Zalmi team and I also request all communities to come and support us, as we need other communities to support cricket in Pakistan. I want to mention here one local restaurant ‘Nawab Sahab’, which is the biggest supporter of Melbourne Zalmi team and during the matches and tournaments, they provided free foods and drinks to our team.

“Pakistanis living at any place or part of the world give tremendous respect and love to their countrymen and are ready to help in the best possible fashion. Melbourne Zalmi is going strong with each passing day and we believe the team will fight their hearts out to land the inaugural World Cup in 2017 in Dubai,” Mehfooz concluded.