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| Pakistan hammer Japan 6-1 to confirm place in Lille finale |
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Friday, November 06, 2009
From Khalid Hussain
LILLE, France: Pakistan marched into the final of the World Cup Qualifiers with an enviable ease, destroying their chief rivals Japan 6-1 in wet and cold conditions here at the Lille Metropole Hockey Club on Thursday.
Drag Flick ace maintained his golden form, string twice in the action-packed encounter as Pakistan's forward-line also went into top gear to ensure that the record four-time world champions will be playing in Sunday's finale.
Also at his best was seasoned striker Rehan Butt, who scored once in each half to keep the Japanese under pressure. Strikers Muhammad Zubair and Shakeel Abbasi chipped in with a goal each to give Pakistan their biggest win in the tournament so far.
Pakistan's Europe-based quartet - Sohail Abbas, Waseem Ahmed, Rehan Butt and goalie Salman Akber - once again underlined the fact that experience can make a difference as they played a major role in achieving a morale-boosting result.
Japan began the match at a fast pace, trying to exert pressure on the Pakistani defence. It was Sohail, who finally opened the Pakistan account as he flicked the ball off a short corner in the 19th minute for a 1-0 lead. Butt made it 2-0 five minutes before half-time, with a great field effort.
The young Japanese team went into an attacking mode in the second session and made it 1-2 off an indirect short corner effort with Katsoyushi Nagasawa netting the ball.
It seemed that Japan were back in the match as they persistently attacked the Pakistani goal but Salman Akber and the rest of the defence turned out to be rock solid.
Japan started providing to many openings for Pakistan, who made full use of it to dominate the last 18 minutes, scoring four more goals.
Sohail made it 3-1 with a trademark flick in the 42nd minute but it was a spectacular goal from the young Muhammad Zubair just two minutes later that brought the crowd to its feet. Zubair got a perfect pass at the top of the circle and scored with a powerful left flick that was too good for the Japanese goalie.
Another goal came in quick succession when Butt got his second strike in the 56th minute with a powerful shot. Five minutes later, Shakeel Abbasi joined in the fun when he made it 6-1 through a stunning field effort that began in the Pakistani half.
Pakistan will play their last league match against Poland on Saturday (tomorrow). With the team already in the final, the team management is planning to rest some of the key players including Sohail Abbas and Shakeel Abbasi.
Earlier in the first match of the day, Poland kept their hopes of reaching the final alive with a comfortable 4-1 win over minnows Italy. Poland were leading 1-0 at halftime before their forwards went into full press to get three more goals in the second session.
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ISSN 1563-9479 
