COAS inaugurates IDP fund-raising cricket match

RAWALPINDI: Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif on Friday hit a boundary to kick off a fund-raising exhibition match being staged on the 69th Independence Day of Pakistan in support of the Internal Displaced Persons (IDPs).

Pakistan's Twenty20 captain Shahid Afridi bowled a delivery to the army chief who played a shot sending the ball across the boundary. Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Asim Bajwa was the wicketkeeper for the delivery.

Maj-Gen Asim Bajwa tweeted that the proceeds of the Azadi (Independence) Cup cricket match, being played between the national and army teams, will be utilised to support IDPs. The Independence Day match in being played at the GHQ stadium in Rawalpindi in solidarity of those who had rendered sacrifices for the country. Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif is the chief guest of the event.

General Raheel Sharif and Major General Asim Bajwa also met with members of the national cricket team and management Head coach of the National Cricket Academy (NCA) Mohammad Akram, Test captain Misbah-ul-Haq, Sohail Tanvir, Mohammad Hafeez, ODI captain Azhar Ali and batsman Ahmed Shehzad. A large number of people were displaced due to the Zarb-i-Azb, Khyber I and Khyber II military operations being conducted in North Waziristan and Khyber tribal regions and living in various refugee camps or with host families in various parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.