This seems like a poor return for a country which is home to more than 240 million people, but there are big hopes for better things at Birmingham 2022.

The country has named 103 athletes for this year's Games, who will find local support from the significant number of people living in Birmingham who have Pakistani heritage.

They will be competing in athletics, aquatics, badminton, boxing, cricket, gymnastics, hockey, judo, squash, table tennis, weightlifting and wrestling.

Names to watch out for include javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem, who finished fifth at both the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and this month's World Athletics Championships in Eugene.

Wrestler Muhammad Inam boasts two Commonwealth Games golds already, including the 86 kilograms freestyle title from four years ago at Gold Coast 2018.

Nooh Dastgir Butt, meanwhile, won heavyweight weightlifting bronze in Gold Coast, while two-time Olympian Shah Hussain Shah will be one to watch in judo.

Pakistan will also hope that its women's T20 cricket team, which is ranked seventh in the world, can upset the medal party as the sport makes its Commonwealth Games debut.

Hockey, too, can never be discounted when it comes to Pakistan although the last of the men's three Olympic titles did come back in 1984.

Syed Muhammad Abid Qadri Gillani, a vice-president of the Pakistan Olympic Association (POA), is serving as Chef de Mission in Birmingham.

He is being assisted by Muhammad Asif Zaman, who has been given the role of deputy Chef de Mission.

"We provided every kind of facility to our athletes to prepare for the quadrennial event and I am very much confident that they will live up to the expectations," Asif said.

"Pakistan has a good chance of medals in wrestling, weightlifting, judo and athletics. 

"Our front-line javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem, who is doing well these days in the World Championship in the US, will also be our top medal hope in England.

"I am also quite confident that we may spring some major surprises in squash, hockey and women's cricket which will be making its debut in the Birmingham Games."

Pakistan's cricketers, led by captain Bismah Maroof, are being financially supported in Birmingham by the Pakistan Cricket Board.

Others are being backed by the POA and the Pakistan Sports Board, with the latter saying it has only chosen to aid "athletes who have bright chances to win medals".

"Look, we always try to back our athletes within our resources," Asif added. 

"We also provided foreign coaches to some federations and enhanced the daily allowances of the athletes.

"There is still room in further giving relief to the athletes and in future we will further boost their daily allowances.

"It was the principal stance of the PSB, and we are backing potential medal winners and those who have been also looked after properly during their preparatory phase." 

Pakistan debuted at the Commonwealth Games in 1954 in Vancouver and enjoyed its best Games in Perth in 1962, winning eight gold medals.

They won four golds at both Kingston 1966 and Edinburgh 1970, before missing the next three Games due to the country withdrawing from the Commonwealth.

When they finally rejoined in Auckland in 1990, Pakistan did not win a medal, and it has been slim pickings since then with just five golds added to their collection.

The Queen's Baton Relay visited in late December and included star athletes such as former world number one squash player Jahangir Khan.

It was also greeted by local dancing and traditional donkey-driven carts.

Khan, six times a world squash champion in the 1980s, comes from a golden era of Pakistan sport which also includes the men's hockey team and cricket success.

While the country will need a while to re-reach those heights, there is confidence that there could be something to celebrate in Birmingham.

One of Nadeem's main opponents will be India's Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra, which will renew the fierce rivalry between the two neighbouring superpowers.

The cricketers, too, have been drawn in the same group as India with their clash promising to be held in front of an electric atmosphere. 

"This is a very important event for the Commonwealth Games Association (CGA) family of Pakistan," said CGA secretary general Muhammad Khalid Mahmood.