After 7 months out, Javeria Khan says she's excited to play cricket again

Javeria Khan, a senior cricketer of the national women's team, has said that she is eager to return to the field following an announcement by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) that cricket activities for female cricketers were resuming from October 8, with first up being a high performance camp in Karachi. 

"We all are excited to be back for camp after seven months and are eagerly awaiting for activities to resume so that we can rediscover our rhythm. It was very frustrating to stay away from cricket. I am glad that we are finally returning," Javeria told Geo Super. 

"Regrouping after seven or eight months, we all are looking forward. My goal is to regain my batting form and score as much as possible," said the opening batter. 

Talking about her lock-down activities, the 32-year-old said that she only focused on fitness and could not do much beyond that.

"At times during lockdown, it became frustrating but there was hope to return to the game we all love," Javeria said.

"The lockdown has taught me that there is nothing permanent in life. Your career is very short so just enjoy whatever you have."

READ: Bermudian David Hemp appointed Pakistan Women’s head coach

With a 'bio-secure' bubble in place, Javeria believes that the new environment will not be difficult to getting used to, adding that it will help her prepare for future tournaments. 

"The SOPs and the bio-secure bubble aren't a distraction. There is nothing more distracting than not being able to play cricket. We are all ready to live with this bio-secure bubble because it is important for our health," she said. 

"There’s a bio-secure environment during men’s National T20 Cup and there will be one for our camp when it starts in Karachi next week. I think this will make us better prepared for our future cricket tournaments. 

She also hailed the appointment of new coach David Hemp, saying that the move will be beneficial for Pakistan Women's cricket.

Javeria also expressed her delight at the growth of women's cricket in Pakistan, which is indicated by an increased number of players in the national pool.

"It is very exciting to see more girls in the national pool. We have a group of 27 for the upcoming camp and target for these 27 is to be among top 14 to get the green cap. The camp will be a very good opportunity for youngsters to show their skills and prove their worth," she said.

Meanwhile, Javeria said that the postponement of ICC events was a blessing in disguise for Pakistan Women's team and others.

“The time span that we all got will provide us an opportunity to better prepare ourselves. If these tournaments were held as per schedule then it would’ve been difficult for many teams as they were not prepared due to the pandemic,” she said.

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