Pakistan draw against France after a thrilling contest in Nations Cup 2022

Pakistan will next take on Japan in match 14th

By Web Desk
December 02, 2022
Pakistan finished last in the group with one point in three games — FIH

Pakistan put on a great display to secure a draw against France in the FIH Men's Nations Cup 2022 in Potchefstroom, South Africa.

Abdul Rana scored a beautiful open-play goal to give Pakistan the lead in the ninth minute, but Pieter van Straaten answered just three minutes later with a fantastic goal.

Before half-time, Pakistan took the lead again. Afraz's effort appeared to have been well stopped by French goalkeeper Arthur Thieffry, but the powerful shot eventually found the back of the net.

Although Pakistan had a strong second-half start, they wasted a few excellent scoring chances, and France made them pay by tying the score with a clever deflection goal by Noé Jouin.

France was given a wonderful opportunity through a penalty corner with less than three minutes left on the clock, and François Goyet stepped up and gave his side the lead. With only 40 seconds remaining, Pakistan showed resilience by scoring from their own penalty corner thanks to Arbaz Ahmad.

The draw was encouraging for a young Pakistan side as they lost their first two matches against Ireland and the hosts South Africa, respectively.

After the draw, Pakistan finished last in the group with one point in three games.

Rana, who was declared player of the match, said: "I think this is a great result for us. France were the red-hot favorites before the tournament, so a competitive performance against them is good for us. It's great exposure for our young players to compete against European teams, and I think our future is very bright."

Pakistan will next take on Japan in the 5th to 8th place match of the Nations Cup on Saturday, December 3.

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