AMSTELVEEN: India defeated Pakistan 5-3 to knock their arch-rivals out of the 2026 Hockey World Cup and secure a place in the knockout stage. The tournament is being jointly hosted by the Netherlands and Belgium.
The defeat was Pakistan’s second in three Pool D matches, ending their hopes of reaching the next stage of 2026 Hockey Worldcup.
After losing 4-1 to England and drawing 3-3 with Wales, Pakistan needed a victory over India to qualify for the knockout stage. However, the team, led by Abu Bakar, struggled under pressure from the outset at Amstelveen.
India, captained by Harmanpreet Singh, produced an aggressive display despite losing 4-2 to England in their previous match.
Harmanpreet opened the scoring from a penalty corner before Abhishek doubled India’s lead in the first quarter.
India maintained their 2-0 advantage at the end of the opening quarter. Harmanpreet then scored his second from a penalty-corner rebound in the second quarter before Hannan Shahid pulled one back for Pakistan.
Abhishek restored India’s two-goal advantage shortly afterwards, before Sufyan scored from Pakistan’s first penalty corner of the quarter. India went into half-time leading 4-2.
India extended their lead to 5-2 from a penalty stroke in the third quarter. Hannan Shahid scored his second goal in the final quarter, but Pakistan could not complete a comeback.
The result sent India and England through to the second round from Pool D, while Pakistan were eliminated from the World Cup.
The two teams also exchanged the traditional handshake after the match.
