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Hockey World Cup: Pakistan lose to Germany, win back fans support
Pakistan produced a lion-hearted performance before going down 0-1 to Olympic bronze medallist Germany in their opening Pool D match.
Four years ago, Germany defeated Pakistan 2-0 in the final to win the Champions Trophy with a partisan crowd booing and jeering every time they touched the ball at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneshwar.
This was in response to the obscene gestures the Pakistan team, who were supported by the crowd till then, made towards the spectators after beating hosts India in the semi-finals.
The incident left a bad taste in the mouth for Indian fans and officials, leading to FIH sanctions against a couple of Pakistani players, disallowing their participation in the Hockey India League (HIL) and the 2016 junior World Cup.
Cut to 2018, Pakistan was again facing Germany at the same venue on Saturday in their World Cup. Only this time, the crowd was supporting Pakistan, who lost their Pool D opener 0-1 to the two-time champions. A 36th minute field goal from the stick of Marco Miltkau was the difference between the two sides.
Both the former champions played cautiously with the Europeans enjoying maximum possession. Germany were clearly the better team, making 10 incursions into the Pakistani circle with the world No.13 team only able to create three chances in the first half.
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The crowd buried the past and supported the players from the neighbouring country, rooting for them and chanting “Pakistan! Pakistan!” every time they created an opportunity.
“We played good hockey but somehow we couldn’t capitalise on the chances and eventually lost. Germany has the best defenders in the world. Despite that we created good opportunities but it was our bad luck that we couldn’t convert them into goals. The crowd was exceptional and the way they supported us was unbelievable. We are thankful to them for this gesture,” said Pakistan skipper Muhammad Rizwan.
Pakistan displayed some excellent moves, playing the old Asian style of hockey with some of their dribbles baffling the Germans. But the Martin Haner-led team eventually broke the deadlock in the 36th minute.
“It’s a big tournament for us after a long gap. We were not playing international matches for last one year while Pakistan has played four FIH tournaments. We were out of touch from international hockey and Pakistan played well,” said Germany coach Stefan Kermas.
