Pakistan lost 4-3 to New Zealand on Wednesday but still managed to qualify for the semifinals of the FIH Hockey Nations Cup.
Pakistan had faced a tough New Zealand side that had already won all its group matches and was looking unstoppable.
New Zealand started strong and scored in the 7th minute through a penalty corner taken by Nic Woods. But Pakistan bounced back quickly and strongly. Abdul Rehman equalised with a brilliant drag flick in the last minute of the first quarter. Just moments later, he scored again after a mistake by New Zealand’s defence and gave Pakistan a 2-1 lead.
Rana Waheed Ashraf added another goal for Pakistan before the first half ended by calmly guiding the ball past the goalkeeper. Pakistan was leading 3-1 and looked set for a famous win at half time.
But things changed dramatically in the second half. New Zealand came out with high energy and put Pakistan under constant pressure. They earned six penalty corners in a row and drag flick specialist Scott Cosslett took full advantage. He scored twice to level the score at 3-3 before the third quarter ended.
Cosslett completed his hat trick with another powerful drag flick and put New Zealand ahead 4-3 in the final quarter.
Pakistan then waited for Japan vs. Malaysia game. Pakistan would have been out if Malaysia had won by two or more goals. But Japan won by 2-1 and this allowed Pakistan to book a spot in the semifinals.
The semi finals are scheduled for today on June20 and the final will be played the next day. The stakes are high as the champion of this tournament will move up to the FIH Hockey Pro League for the 2025–26 season.
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