Pakistan’s hockey team secured top spot in the Asian Hockey 5 World Cup Qualifier after finishing their last group game in a 5-5 draw with Malaysia. Pakistan remained undefeated throughout the tournament, leading the table with 13 points, followed closely by India with 12 points.
In a thrilling match against Malaysia, Rana Abdul Waheed scored three goals while Mohammad Murtaza and Abdul Rehman contributed one goal each for the Pakistani side. For Malaysia, Din Muhammad scored twice, while Matt Charman, Anwar Akhimura and Ishak Arif scored one each.
Malaysia secured third place in the points table, followed by Bangladesh, Oman and Japan in fourth, fifth and sixth. In previous matches, Pakistan beat arch-rivals India and Bangladesh 5-4 and 15-6 respectively.
The Pakistani team is led by Olympian Wasim Ferose Head Coach and Major Coach Muhammad Shanawaz Khan.
The elite tier includes India, Malaysia, Pakistan, Japan, Oman and Bangladesh, while the challenger tier includes Hong Kong, China, Indonesia, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan and Iran. The tournament will continue with crossover matches between teams from both pools, ultimately leading to the selection of finalists who will qualify for the inaugural FIH Hockey 5s World Cup Oman 2024.
