LAHORE, March 11 Pakistan hockey team, after its worst ever performance in the World Cup, has announced its retirement en masse from international hockey, an official press release of the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) said on Thursday.

“Captain of Pakistan team Zeeshan Ashraf said from New Delhi, India, that all the 18 players while taking responsibility for the team's poor show at the mega event had decided to retire from international hockey.

“He said that the PHF have done a lot for the players in every field but the players could not deliver as per the expectations of the nation.

“We will support the PHF in the future in any aspect of the game and will also be available if Pakistan needs any player any time,” it further said.

The 18 players who announced their retirement are Nasir Ahmad, Salman Akbar (goalkeepers); Zeeshan Ashraf, Sohail Abbas, Mohammad Rashid (full-backs); Mohammad Irfan, Waseem Ahmad, Mohammad Imran, Fareed Ahmad, Sajjad Anwar (halves); Rehan Butt, Shakeel Abbasi, Abdul Haseem Khan, Mohammad Zubair, Akhtar Ali, Omer Bhutta, Abbas Haider and Mohammad Rizwan (forwards).

Pakistan earned the 12th position in the 12-team mega event. It could win only one match against Spain while losing to India, England, Australia and weak sides such as South Africa and Canada.

The national team is to arrive here on Saturday.