Hockey5s World Cup: Pakistan thump Australia to stay in hunt for Challenger Trophy

Pakistan stayed in the hunt for the Challenger Trophy, where they will face Switzerland or New Zealand, in the Hockey 5s World Cup in Muscat, Oman, on Tuesday.

Captain Rana Waheed Ashraf scored five goals as Pakistan defeated Australia 11-3 in the 9th-12th place match.

Pakistan will face Switzerland or New Zealand in the 9th-10th place match tomorrow, with the winner bagging the Challenger Trophy.

Pakistan were knocked out of the race for the quarter-finals of the Hockey5s World Cup on Monday after losing 8-7 to Poland.

Pakistan just needed a draw against Poland in Pool A to make it through to the quarter-finals but the Green Shirts failed to grab the opportunity.

Pakistan were 3-0 down at one stage but made a comeback to level proceedings at 6-6. However, Poland struck late to take the match away from Pakistan once again. Captain Rana Waheed Ashraf scored five goals for the losing side.

Pakistan played two matches on Sunday, losing one and winning the other. They beat Nigeria 11-5 to begin their campaign but went down 5-3 against the Netherlands.

The Netherlands will face Oman, meanwhile Malaysia will lock horns with Poland, in the semi-finals later today.

According to the official FIH website, as its name suggests, Hockey5s is played with 5 athletes per team. It is particularly known for its non-stop end-to-end action, since the ball is in play for about 90% of a match, thanks to rebound-boards placed against the outside of the side-lines and back-lines. There are usually more goals with Hockey5s than with the more traditional 11-a-side format of hockey, since players can score from anywhere after the attacking line. Furthermore, Hockey5s is played on a smaller pitch, which enables to bring hockey to new venues, even at the heart of the cities.

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