GNIEZNO (Poland): France in a thrilling match edged Pakistan 6-5 in their FIH Nations Cup match in Gniezno on Wednesday.

Despite losing the match, the green-shirts qualified for the final of the nine-nation event.

Pakistan face New Zealand in the semi-final on Saturday. The final will be held on Sunday. The winning team will qualify for the FIH Pro League.

France took lead in the seventh minute as Victor Charlet scored on a penalty corner. Rogeau Blaise followed up with a field goal in the 14th, putting France ahead 2-0 by the end of the first quarter.

Gaspard Baumgarten scored a field goal in the 23rd minute while Charlet again netted a goal in the 25th as France cruised to a strong 4-0 lead.

With their backs to the wall, Pakistan launched a comeback when Abu Mahmood converted a penalty stroke in the 26th minute followed by a goal from Murtaza Yaqoob in the 29th on a penalty corner.

Charlet netted his third goal in the 39th minute, as France led 5-2 at the end of the third quarter.

The fourth quarter was all about Pakistan. Rana Waheed scored in the 46th minute while Abdul Rehman scored a field goal in the 52nd minute, and Hannan Shahid netted a penalty corner goal in the 56th minute for Pakistan, but it wasn’t enough to secure a win as Charlet scored via penalty corner to lead France to a win in the dying seconds on the encounter.

Earlier, Pakistan registered a win and a draw in the tournament. After drawing 4-4 against Malaysia, they thrashed Canada 8-1.

Published in Dawn, June 6th, 2024