U16 Asia Cup: Pakistan thrash Chinese Taipei 16-1 in opener

Hockey team records massive win; Atiq stars with five goals.

KARACHI:

The Pakistan side got off to a flying start as it got its first taste of five-a-side hockey at the U16 Asia Cup, smashing 16 goals against a hapless Chinese Taipei outfit in their tournament opener in Singapore yesterday.

The junior team, which had prepared for weeks to adjust to the new pattern, completely demolished their opponents during the 16-1 win.

Rising star Mohammad Atiq was the star of the day for the young side, netting five goals in the contest. Other contribution came from Shan Irshad who scored four goals, while captain Nohaid Zahid Malik recorded a hat-trick in the massive win.

Junaid Kamal, Adeel Latif, Junaid Manzoor and Sikandar Mustafa scored a goal apiece.

Pakistan, dubbed as favourites in the tournament, will play two matches today — the first against China with the second one seeing them vie with Japan.

As many as 10 teams are taking part in the competition that will run till April 7.

Pakistan are placed with Japan, China, Sri Lanka and Chinese Taipei in Pool A, while the other group features Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Bangladesh and Kazakhstan.

It is for the first time that an official tournament is being played on this pattern, the breakup of which includes three sessions of 12 minutes with an interval of a couple of minutes in between.

The other big differences with the traditions hockey are the size of the pitch, which is 55m long x 41.70m wide — around half the size of a normal pitch.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 5^th, 2013.