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| May 18, 2005 | Wednesday | Rabi-us-Sani 9, 1426 |
Two-goal Rehan helps Seniors win series
KARACHI, May 17: Two-goal Rehan Butt gave Pakistan seniors an undeserved 3-1 victory over inexperienced but resilient Rest XI to help his side win the three-match series 2-0 at Hockey Club of Pakistan on Tuesday. Pakistan seniors were held to a draw 3-3 in the opening game before winning the second 3-0.
Although scoreline seems to be flattering, that was certainly not the case as Rest XI gave their seniors a tough time and quite a few times big scares during the game, especially after the lemons.
Not only Rest XI reduced the margin after Pakistan seniors grabbed the lead, they were threatening the opposition with darting runs with green shirts battling to hold 2-1 advantage.
The match would have ended with a 2-1 win for Pakistan seniors had Rehan not extended the lead to 3-1 with a dying-moment strike.
Imran Warsi, the penalty corner striker borrowed by the senior side from the juniors after Sohail Abbas’s refusal to join national training camp, could not find the target even once off eight short corners.
If one goes by the break-up of the penalty corner efforts, Imran Warsi certainly needs improvement but can’t be blamed fully for the failure as the ball did not stop properly twice, once team officials opted for indirect drill, four times he was blocked either by dashers or goalkeeper Nasir Ahmad, while once he failed to find the target.
Samiullah Khan, the senior team manager, said ball was not stopping properly chiefly because of defective pitch, especially at one end.
Mohammad Saqlain, recently appointed captain despite his misconducts in the past, only played the first half, while came off the bench in the second session some 10 minutes before time.
Like the previous two matches, Pakistan seniors were unimpressive throughout the match, although Pakistan Hockey Federation has included 12 best players from the juniors to form a formidable side for May 26 to June 5 Azlan Shah Cup in Kuala Lumpur.
The start seemed to be perfect for Pakistan seniors as Tariq Aziz deflected home a free hit which came after the first move by his side in the sixth minute.
Pakistan seniors were 2-0 up eight minutes later when Tariq and Saqlain were involved in a fine move from the left which ended on Rehan giving the finishing touch.
Mohammad Ishtiaq of Rest XI, who was constantly threatening the Pakistan with his dribbling skills, twice penetrated through the defence resulting in a penalty corner converted by Mohammad Imran with a slow push in the 18th minute.
Rest XI’s Waqas Sharif came near scoring but hit the side-netting, while Zeeshan’s pass to Mukhtar ended in another short corner which could not be converted as the ball did not stop.
Nasir, who produced stupendous saves in the second game on Monday, was brilliant as he dashed from his line to unnerve Imran Warsi on the third short corner in the 32nd minute.
Mohammad Imran was also effectively blocked by Pakistan seniors’ dashers two minutes into the second half as the push seemed too slow. On the other hand, Imran Warsi was again checked by a gallant dash once by Nasir and again by a dasher in the 45th and 53rd minutes.
Rest XI, having standbys of seniors and juniors, rattled their senior counterparts with an excellent move only to see Zubair feeding Waqas who tried but hit goalkeeper Salman Akbar’s helmet and then shot over the bar off rebound.
Saqlain came off the bench only to be green carded for hitting despite a whistle for foul.
Rehan took full advantage of a defensive lapse by slotting home from the top of the circle two minutes from final hooter after Imran Warsi was again blocked by a dasher.
Imran Warsi should have scored the fourth but did not give Nasir a testing time, pushing the ball straight to goalkeeper’s gloves rather than trying through another angle.
Not matter how unimpressive Pakistan were, they should win the seven-nation contest in Kuala Lumpur given the fact Australia are the only world class side. However the Aussies should not be too difficult to handle since they have inducted almost have a dozen junior players, while Pakistan are a best possible outfit having experienced players.
Apart from Pakistan and Australia, Malaysia, South Korea, South Africa and India will be in the fray.
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