KUALA LUMPUR: The Pakistan hockey team kicked off their Junior World Cup campaign with an impressive draw against the Netherlands 3-3 on Wednesday at Malaysia National Hockey Stadium.
The Netherlands started the game on high with two field goals in the 21st and 30th minutes by Boris Aardenburg and Casper van der Veen respectively to end the first half with a massive advantage over Pakistan.
Pakistan then decreased the deficit by one goal in the third quarter courtesy of midfielder Arshad Liaqat’s field goal to bring the scores down to 2-1.
The Green Shirts then earned a penalty in the 36th minute of the third quarter, which was successfully converted by Sufian Khan to level the scores.
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However, the Netherlands did not slow down and took the lead again in the 47th minute with a field goal by Olivier Hortensius.
Their lead did not last long as Pakistan’s Arbaz Ahmed helped his side level the scores with an equalizing penalty corner.
Pakistan will play their next Junior Hockey World Cup match against New Zealand tomorrow and then against Belgium on 9th December.
Pakistan won the inaugural Junior World Cup in 1979 and then claimed bronze medals in the next three editions before getting a silver in the 1993 edition.
They have not been able to win any medal in the Junior World Cup since 1993 and finished at their lowest 11th position in the 2021 edition in Bhubaneswar, India.
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