Pakistan's Hockey Team has been going through one of the toughest times in its history. The four time World Champions finished at the 12th position in the recently concluded World Cup in India. It surpasses Pakistan's worst ever performance in any World Cup in hockey. There were a number of changes in the board and the team after the World Cup debacle. President of Pakistan Hockey Federation Qasim Zia disbanded the entire selection committee and the team management. PHF Secretary Asif Bajwa was the only member of the team management who kept his place after the poor show in India.
The entire Pakistani team had voluntarily resigned from the team, but the PHF president refused to accept. There was criticism coming in from all corners of the country, which was not a big surprise. Given how miserably Pakistan had performed in recent events, former Olympians formed two separate groups - one supporting Qasim Zia and the board while the other group asking for the removal of the entire management of the PHF. Somehow, Qasim Zia managed to hold to his seat. The move was not surprising at all; given the number of positive things that Qasim Zia has accomplished during his tenure as the President of the PHF. He has developed a proper structure for domestic events in Pakistan and has offered scholarships and better pays for professional players in the country.
Since the nightmare in India, the Sultan Azlan Shah tournament is the first big challenge for the Pakistani hockey team in Malaysia. In their first match, Pakistan faced hosts' Malaysia. It was an eagerly contested match, which ended on level terms at three goals each.
The fourth minute of the first half saw Shehzad Amir leading Pakistan’s counter attack into the Malaysian defense. Rasool Shafqat in the end deflected the ball in the back of the net to make it one nil for Pakistan. As the match progressed, Malaysia won two penalty corners in the 8th and 9th minute. However, Malaysian forwards failed to covert it into a goal. It was the third penalty corner for Malaysia, which helped them score their first goal. This time around, they tried a different strategy by deflecting the ball on the side and Hafiz Hanfi made it one 1-1. Malaysia turned up the heat in the second half of the match with a series of attacks on Pakistan's defense. Tengku Ahmad of Malaysia earned the fourth penalty corner for his team. Malaysia’s drag flick specialist Amin Saed fired a low trajectory hit to the right side of Pakistani goalkeeper Imran Butt, who failed to stop it. This goal made the score line 2-1 in favor of Malaysia. The goal did not stop the constant pressure on the Pakistani defenders and just a minute later, Hafiz Hanfi made it 3-1 for the host team.
Nevertheless, Pakistan did not give up and started to claw their way back into the game. In the 56th minute, some confusion in the Malaysian defense saw Muhammad Irfan taking full advantage of the situation, by cutting down the lead by 3-2.
The game was on a knife’s edge at that time, with the home side looking to hold on for a win. Pakistan on the other hand were determined to level the match, and the determination paid off just seconds before the final whistle as Muhammad Zubair netted the equalizer to send the home crowd in a state of shock. Both teams shared one point each. Pakistan will play against defending champions India in the second match of their campaign in Malaysia.
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