BEIJING (Dunya News) – Pakistan continued their impressive run at the Junior Hockey Asia Cup in China as the men’s team recorded a fourth consecutive victory by beating Bangladesh 3-0, while the women’s side secured a place in the quarterfinals after a 1-1 draw against Kazakhstan.
The Pakistan junior men finished at the top of their group following another commanding performance and remained unbeaten in the tournament.
Pakistan will now face South Korea in the semifinal on Friday, with a place in the final at stake.
Against Bangladesh, Pakistan adopted an attacking approach from the opening stages and quickly took control of the contest.
Rana Waleed produced an outstanding early spell, scoring two field goals within three minutes. He opened the scoring in the ninth minute before striking again in the 12th to give Pakistan a comfortable 2-0 advantage.
Bangladesh attempted to recover, but Pakistan maintained their defensive discipline and prevented their opponents from finding a way back into the match.
The national side continued to press for another goal before Ghulam Mustafa put the result beyond doubt in the final quarter.
Mustafa completed a well-executed field move in the 52nd minute to score Pakistan’s third goal and seal a convincing 3-0 victory.
The result marked Pakistan junior men’s fourth successive win in the competition and maintained their unbeaten record ahead of the knockout stage.
Their consistency during the group phase has put Pakistan in a strong position going into Friday’s semifinal against South Korea.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s junior women also had reason to celebrate after qualifying for the quarterfinals following a hard-fought 1-1 draw against Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan took the lead through Aman Geldi Zhansaya, who scored in the 15th minute and left Pakistan chasing the game.
The Pakistani women responded with determination but had to wait until the closing stages to find the equaliser.
Captain Shariqa Sarwar stepped up in the 55th minute, scoring a crucial field goal to bring Pakistan level at 1-1.
Neither side managed to find a winner in the remaining minutes, but the draw proved sufficient for Pakistan to advance to the quarterfinals.