Karachi: The Pakistan hockey team’s schedule was confirmed on Tuesday ahead of the FIH Nations Cup.
The Pakistan team will travel to the Netherlands before the important FIH Nations Cup in Gniezno, Poland.
The Green Shirts will face the Dutch national team on May 22, followed by two or three matches against local Dutch clubs.
The Pakistan team impressed in the recent Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in Malaysia, but lost to Japan on penalty kicks in the final.
Pakistan hockey hit rock bottom earlier this year when they failed to qualify for the Olympics for the third time in a row where they won three gold medals. In addition, the Green Shirts failed to qualify for the World Cup last year, where they won four gold medals.
However, the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup was a breath of fresh air for hockey fans as they reached the finals of the event for the first time in 13 years.
Pakistan’s performance in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup should be a morale booster for the team, especially having to play in the FIH Nations Cup from May 31 to June 9.
Hosts Poland will join Austria, Canada, France, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Pakistan and South Africa in the competition for the hosts’ trophy. Teams are divided into two pools of 5 and 4. Pakistan is in Pool B with Canada, France and Malaysia.
Pakistan team is traveling directly to Poland from Netherlands.
