JOHOR BAHRU: Pakistan’s junior hockey team has withdrawn from the 2025 Sultan of Johor Cup after being held to a 3-3 draw against Australia at the Taman Daya Stadium here on Friday.
Already out of the finals, Pakistan made a dismal start to their final league match as leaders Australia made a dominant start by scoring two goals in the first quarter through Oscar Sproule and captain Toby Mallon.
Australia’s lead remained intact until half-time when Green Shirts pulled one back in the penultimate quarter through captain Hannan Shahid, who scored a brilliant field goal in the 38th minute.
Ian Grobbelaar then restored Australia’s two-goal lead just two minutes into the final quarter, but Shahid struck again to make it 3–2 in the former’s favour.
The Green Shirts finally scored an equalizer in the 57th minute, thanks to a field goal from Saif Ullah, and despite repeated attempts from Australia and Pakistan for the winner in the final three minutes, the score remained intact at 3–3.
After the stalemate, Pakistan finished fourth with five points in as many matches and will now battle Great Britain for third place in the six-team tournament on Saturday.
Meanwhile, unbeaten Australia, who finished top of the standings with 11 points in five matches, will take on India in the final.
For the unversed, Pakistan got off to a flying start for the 2025 Sultan of Johor Cup as they humiliated Malaysia 7-2.
The Green Shirts were subsequently deprived of a win as they suffered defeats to Great Britain and New Zealand, while settling for a draw against arch-rivals India and Australia respectively.
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