Pakistan’s men’s hockey team opened their campaign at the 20th Asian Games in Japan with a statement, thrashing Thailand 9-0 in a Pool B fixture at the Gifu Prefectural Green Stadium on Saturday. Forward Ahmed Nadeem scored a hat-trick as the Green Shirts never let Thailand settle, building a two-goal lead inside the first quarter and adding to it in every period that followed.
Moeen Shakeel opened the scoring in the 8th minute, and Ammad Butt doubled the lead four minutes later to put Pakistan 2-0 up at the first break. Nadeem then took over, striking in the 20th, 37th and 43rd minutes, while Sufyan Khan converted two penalty corners in quick succession (22′ and 23′) to push the score to 5-0 by half-time. Rana Waheed Ashraf and Hanan Shahid added further goals in the third quarter as Pakistan’s lead swelled to 7-0, before the team closed out the win with two more goals in the final quarter.
| Period | Score (Pakistan-Thailand) |
|---|---|
| 1st Quarter | 2-0 |
| 2nd Quarter (Half-time) | 5-0 |
| 3rd Quarter | 7-0 |
| 4th Quarter (Final) | 9-0 |
| Scorer | Goals | Minute(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Ahmed Nadeem | 3 | 20′, 37′, 43′ |
| Sufyan Khan | 2 (penalty corners) | 22′, 23′ |
| Moeen Shakeel | 1 | 8′ |
| Ammad Butt | 1 | 12′ |
| Rana Waheed Ashraf | 1 | 31′ |
| Hanan Shahid | 1 | 34′ |
Pakistan also dominated possession (57%) and won seven penalty corners to Thailand’s two, according to the Associated Press of Pakistan. The Express Tribune summed up the performance simply, noting that Pakistan “controlled the match from the first whistle and never allowed Thailand a meaningful chance.”
“Ahmed Nadeem helped himself to a hat-trick, while Sufyan Khan struck twice from penalty corners as Pakistan controlled the match from the first whistle and never allowed Thailand any real scoring chance across all four quarters,” The Express Tribune reported.
The lopsided scoreline offered some early relief for Pakistan’s Asian Games contingent, which had a mixed start elsewhere in Japan. All three Pakistani swimmers were eliminated in the heats, with Hamza Asif finishing 35th overall in the 100m freestyle and Hareem Malik and Mishael Aisha Hyat placing 22nd and 24th respectively in the 50m breaststroke, Dawn reported. Pakistan’s boxers, including Fatima Zehra, Maria Rind, Sumama Rehman and Irfan Khan, are yet to begin their bouts after Saturday’s draw ceremony.
According to The Express Tribune, Pakistan’s hockey side next face Uzbekistan on September 22 as they look to build on their opening win. The result is a welcome change of fortune on the sporting front after Pakistan’s men’s cricket team was eliminated from the same Asian Games following a semi-final loss to Sri Lanka earlier this week.
Our Opinion
A 9-0 win says as much about Thailand’s developing hockey program as it does about Pakistan’s quality, but for a team that has spent years fighting to stay relevant on the world stage, a dominant, injury-free opener against comparatively weaker opposition is exactly the kind of result that steadies nerves ahead of tougher tests against the likes of India, South Korea or Japan; the real measure of this squad’s Asian Games campaign will come once they face teams that can actually contest possession and penalty corners the way Thailand couldn’t.
