Hajra Khan ( ur, ) (born 29 December 1993) is a Pakistani

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who is the

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

of the

Pakistan women's national football team The Pakistan women's national football team is the female representative football team for Pakistan. The team was formed in 2010 and has not yet entered the AFC Women's Asian Cup or FIFA Women's World Cup, but has competed in four editions of ...

. She plays as a

striker Striker or The Strikers may refer to: People *A participant in a strike action *A participant in a hunger strike *Blacksmith's striker, a type of blacksmith's assistant *Striker's Independent Society, the oldest mystic krewe in America People wi ...

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

. She became part of Pakistan national team in 2009 which she led as a captain from 2014.

Early and personal life

Hajra Khan was born on December 29, 1993, in

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. From an early age, Khan's dream was to become a

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-devel ...

but not a footballer. She was discovered by

Diya W.F.C. Diya Women Football Club ( ur, ), also referred to as Diya W.F.C., Diya WFC, Diya FC, Diya, Diya Women FC, or DWFC, is a Pakistani women's association football and futsal club based in Karachi. ''Diya'' means Diya (lamp), lamp in Urdu. It is th ...

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

Sadia Sheikh, when she was looking for provincial team. Khan debuted aged 14 and scored nine goals in three games for Diya W.F.C., which won her the Top Scorer of the tournament award.

Club career

Starting with

, she won the Misha Dawood Trophy during the

2010 National Women Football Championship The 2010 National Women's Football Championship was the 6th season of the National Women Football Championship, the top-tier of women's football in Pakistan. The event took place from 28 September to 10 October 2010 at Jinnah Sports Stadium in Is ...

. In January 2014, she decided to leave Diya and join Balochistan United. Khan won the

Pakistani women's football championship The National Women Football Championship is the top Single-elimination tournament, cup competition for Women's association football, women's football clubs in Pakistan – designed as an equivalent to the Pakistan National Football Challenge Cu ...

with Balochistan United in 2014, scoring the only goal against former club Diya in the final. She then accepted an offer to play for Maldivian club Sun Hotels and Resorts FC in the

FAM Women's Football Championship The FAM Women's Football Championship is a Maldivian football competition for women, run by The Football Association of Maldives. Past winners Winners table References External linksWomen's Championship {{Top level women's association ...

. In summer 2015, Khan spent a month in Germany and attended pre-season trials with four clubs. She was unable to accept a transfer offer from

MSV Duisburg Meidericher Spielverein 02 e. V. Duisburg, commonly known as simply MSV Duisburg (), is a Football in Germany, German association football club based in Duisburg, North Rhine-Westphalia. Nicknamed ''Die Zebras'' for their traditional striped jers ...

due to visa issues. She became the only Pakistani player to score 100 goals in her club career. She joined Sun Hotels and Resorts Maldives club on 24 May 2015. Hajra currently plays for Pakistan Army.

International career

In 2009, Khan was selected in the Pakistan national team for the

2010 South Asian Games The 2010 South Asian Games, officially the XI South Asian Games, was a major multi-sport event that took place from 29 January to 8 February 2010 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. This was the third time that the Bangladeshi capital hosted the South Asian ...

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. After Khan's participation at this event, the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) selected her for a

FIFA FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...

women's football coaching course in

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. In December 2010, she played in the inaugural

SAFF Women's Championship The SAFF Women's Championship, also called the ''South Asian Football Federation Women's Cup'', is the main association football competition of the women's national football teams, governed by the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF). All seve ...

, helping Pakistan reach the semi-final. She was the first Pakistani women footballer to sign an international contract in 2014 with Sun Hotels & Resorts Football Club to play in the Maldives National Women's league.

International Statistics

As an Athlete

Netball

At the 2011 South Asian Beach Games in

Hambantota Hambantota ( si, හම්බන්තොට, ta, அம்பாந்தோட்டை) is the main town in Hambantota District, Southern Province, Sri LankaThe prominent Malays (මැලේ) most part of the population is to be partly des ...

, the talented young athlete even helped the Pakistan National Netball Team bring home a bronze medal.

Honours

* National Women Football Championship:

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

References

External links

Profile
at Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) {{DEFAULTSORT:Khan, Hajra Pakistani women's footballers Pakistan women's international footballers Living people 1994 births Footballers from Karachi Diya W.F.C. players Balochistan United W.F.C. players Pakistani expatriate sportspeople in the Maldives Women's association football midfielders Women's association football forwards FSV Gütersloh 2009 players