GNIEZNO (Poland): Forward Rana Waheed’s superb four-goal show helped Pakistan crush Canada 8-1 in their second pool match of the in the FIH Nations Cup in Gneizno on Monday.

With this massive victory Pakistan led pool ‘B’ that also includes France and Malaysia and got close to qualifying for the semi-finals of the nine-nation event. Pakistan in their opening match of the event drew 4-4 against Malaysia.

Other than Waheed’s impressive show, Ghaz­anfar Ali contributed a brace while Abdul Rehman and Hannan Shahid chipped in with a goal each.

Sean Davis opened the scoring for Canada in the second minute of the match but Pakistan responded after no less than five minutes as Waheed equalised with a brilliant strike.

Waheed added one more in the 27th minute as Pakistan ended the second quarter with a one-goal lead.

Ghazanfar scored his second goal in the third quarter as Pakistan extended their lead to 3-1.

However, Pakistan’s best was yet to come as they smashed five goals in the last quarter, leaving no room for the Canadian side. All these goals were scored in the final 10 minutes.

With a healthy goal difference, Pakistan are now in a strong position in pool B, boosting their chances of advancing to the semi-finals. The team will look to maintain this momentum in their last pool stage match against France scheduled for Wednesday.

Published in Dawn, June 4th, 2024