EMbracing The true essence of diversification can have large -scale implications in the spectrum, including sports. The adoption and implementation of the diversification approach can lead to a deep and positive impact on Pakistani sports in more than one way.
Depends on the limited number of sports
For too long now, Pakistan has been based on the three sports crickets, squash and hockey. It was in 1992 that we reached our apex point when the Imran Khan team made the country proud by winning the ICC ODI World Cup.
However, in the meantime, Pakistan’s fortune in other major sports, including hockey and squash, was down.
The Olympic Games are a good measure of the international position of a country in sports. And here is the shocking drawback.
From 1992 to 2024, Pakistan went without a single medal anyway, not even a bronze medal. In addition, they never gained gold in the solo event until Nadeem Arshad the Javelin launcher, came to their rescue by winning a gold medal for his country at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
The concern is the fact that it took 77 years in Pakistan to win his first gold medal in the category of the individual player.
Currently, Pakistan is based strongly on cricket to win its laurels in sport. There is a terrible need to (i) consolidate on the sports that we best know, hockey, squash and cricket (HSC) and (ii) more importantly, diversifying in other sports.
Consolidation of
existing sports
Pakistan was considered one of the best countries with regard to the domination of HSC sports. In hockey, for example, Pakistan dominated sports after winning the Male Hockey World Cup four times and Olympic gold medals three times. However, it was past years, the last gold medal won in the 1994 World Cup. Likewise, Pakistan led the squash world for decades, with an unequaled record of 30 British open titles and 17 titles of the open world, presenting its complete domination. However, as in hockey, the titles organized in Squash are now in history. With cricket, it’s a different ball game. It is not only a game, it is a national passion, especially with regard to the matches against their former rivals of India. Although Pakistan won its latest ICC World Cup in 1992, they are still a major international force with which to count, having won various prestigious international tournaments, and making their presence in the ICC ODI global ranking as class 1 classified in 2023, # 1 Ranking test in 2016 and the higher classification of T20 locations in 2018.
There have been positive results for the squash and hockey, but in the recent past, which revives the hope of the nation for a return of the revolution. Squash’s recent notable performance includes Pakistan winning the World Squash Championship under 23 in 2025 by beating Egypt in the final. (Noor Zaman of Pakistan beat Kareen El Torkey of Egypt). Pakistani ladies have also made squash waves. In the same event where Noor won the Laurels for Pakistan, the squash player Our Lady, Amna Fayyaz, also made his mark by being declared silver medalist at the WSF 2025 world squash championship under 23. It has indeed provided a headlight of hope, a silver lining to the cloud for the inclusiveness between the sexes in Pakistani sports.
Also in hockey, Pakistan has returned. They reached the final of the prestigious Sultan Azlan Shah cup, Sultan Azlan, which was in itself a great success and can be considered as a resurgence of hockey in Pakistan. This recovery trend was further reinforced by the exemplary performance of Pakistan in the Cup tournament under the age of 18 of the Asian 2025 Cup in China where they remained undefeated to the final, which they lost to Japan 3-0. However, their overall performance in the Sultan Azlan Shah 2024 tournament and again the sequence of the Asian Cup under 18 in 2025 highlights the talent, prowess and past resilience of seniors to their young people, traits which were once a characteristic of the supremacy and the invincibility of Pakistan at the highest international level.
With already well -established infrastructure, including stages, training facilities and guiding bodies for three sports, solid leadership and resilience are required by all stakeholders as well as appropriate financing to upgrade installations to reprimand the spark, drawing inspiration from previous achievements to serve as motivation for current and future generations.
Need for diversification
Pakistan is counting on its three national sports, that is to say cricket, hockey and squash for too long now. While the cricket remains the most popular sport number 1, we could not maintain the same level of supremacy in the other two. In addition, sports and crickets receive only a limited international coverage due to the least of a cricket player in relation to football for example.
Diversification beyond the cricket could create more exposure and international opportunities, increase global income related to sports and discover more athletic talents. Without withdrawing anything from the cricket, the fact remains that cricket is more specific to the region while sports like football and tennis attract a more global appeal and audience. Cricket followers are mainly based in countries like India, Pakistan, England and Australia. In a major ICC World Cup tournament, for example, cricket attracts an audience up to a billion viewers while a FIFA World Cup event can attract up to 3.5 billion viewers from a much wider population. In addition, from a commercial angle, the football market is much higher and attracts larger sponsorships. Overall, the funds thus received from football tournaments can consult the construction of infrastructure, training facilities and towards the overall improvement of the player.
Tennis is another game that has popularity in Pakistan and is a good candidate during diversification. Players like Aisam-Ul-Haq have had notable successes by reaching the American finals of open doubles and mixed doubles in 2010. Its successes in the past can be used as inspiration for young people to occupy tennis. Although in terms of viewers, tennis does not boast the same as in cricket, it enjoys a much broader world scope and tends to attract a more diverse global audience. Recent cooperation between two sports bodies, that is to say that the PCB and the PTF is a good initiative to promote tennis and other sports in the country. During a meeting held on July 9, 2025, the PCB president held a meeting with the president of the PTF, Aisam-UL-Haq, to discuss the promotion of tennis across the country. President PCB assured the president of the PTF of his full cooperation for the promotion of tennis, in particular the expansion of the current infrastructure and the construction of new tennis courts. According to the president of the PTF, “the country overflows with talent not only in cricket but also in tennis.”
There are other sports where Pakistani athletes have had successes at international levels, including snooker, boxing, struggle, shooting, inner rowing, etc. which guarantee special attention in terms of diversification.
The most recent among these were the least expected of sports when Pakistan won an astonishing victory over the Maldives to win the netball championship for young Asians in 2025. The team remained undefeated throughout the tournament, presenting their exceptional talent.
In conclusion, it is time that we reduce our dependence on a single sport by launching a dynamic program to promote several sports. The diversification of sports is the key to exploiting our existing youth talents and identifying and developing new ones. We must invest in sports infrastructure, promote diversified sports at the base, especially in schools and at community level, provide training and coaching facilities and promote public partnerships to finance programs related to the development of sport.
The author, a principal consultant at the Burki Institute of Public Policy in Netsol, is a company member of the Institution of Engineering Technology, United Kingdom, and approved engineer, United Kingdom. It can be contacted at: rehan30@hotmail.com
