Pakistan’s failure to qualify for the 2023 Hockey World Cup perfectly reflects the dire situation of the country’s national sport. With limited funding and little interest shown by the decision-makers, Pakistan has been constantly on a downward trajectory.
Once regarded as the best team in the world, Pakistan is now ranked number 18 in the sport, behind the likes of Wales, Japan, South Korea, and Ireland. The Men in Green have now failed to qualify for the mega event two out of three times. They had qualified for every World Cup before this debacle.
The Green Shirts, despite their fall from grace of late, still hold the record for most World Cup titles in history. Pakistan won the first edition of the mega event back in 1971 while their fourth and last title came back in 1994. Since then, their best finish in the tournament has been the fifth position in 1998 and 2002.
Let’s have a look at their performances in every Hockey World Cup:
Pakistan won the inaugural World Cup held in 1971 in Spain. The Men in Green beat arch-rivals India in the semi-final before overcoming hosts Spain 1-0 in the final of the tournament. Akhtar ul Islam scored the winning goal in the final.
Two years later, India avenged their semi-final loss to Pakistan as they beat them 1-0 at the same stage in the 1973 World Cup held in the Netherlands. Pakistan lost the third-place encounter to West Germany as they finished at the fourth spot. The Netherlands beat India on penalties to win the final.
The Green Shirts suffered an agonizing loss to India in the final of the 1975 World Cup in Malaysia. Pakistan lost 2-1 to their arch-rivals as they finished the tournament as runners-up. Mohammad Zahid Sheikh scored Pakistan’s only goal in the final.
Green Jerseys secured their second World Cup title as they beat Netherlands 3-2 in the final. Akhtar Rasool, Islahuddin Siddiqui, and Rana Ehsanullah scored the goals as Pakistan lifted the title in the 1978 World Cup held in Argentina.
Four years later, the Men in Green successfully defended their title as they beat West Germany 3-1 in the final of the 1982 World Cup. Hassan Sardar, Manzoor Jnr. and Kaleemullah Khan scored the three goals as Pakistan lifted their third title in Bombay (now Mumbai), India.
Pakistan’s first major failure came in the 1986 edition of the mega event. The Green Shirts were abysmal in the campaign as they finished at the 11th spot, beating India 3-2 in the 11th place play-off. Australia beat England 2-1 to lift their first title.
Pakistan roared back in the 1990 edition held in Lahore, Pakistan. The Men in Green looked destined to lift the World Cup trophy again but suffered a 3-1 loss to the Netherlands in the final. This was the second time Pakistan finished as runners-up.
The 1994 World Cup in Australia saw a rematch of the previous final as Pakistan and Netherlands locked horns once again. Pakistan managed to avenge their loss in the 1990 final as they emerged victorious on penalties. The match had finished 1-1 in regular time with Kamran Ashraf scoring Pakistan’s only goal. This was the last time Pakistan finished within the top 4 in the mega event.
Pakistan finished 5th in the 1998 World Cup held in the Netherlands. Pakistan beat England 4-2 in the fifth-place play-off. The Netherlands lifted their third title, this time in front of their home crowd, as they beat Spain 3-2 in the final.
Pakistan finished at the fifth spot once again in the 2002 World Cup held in Malaysia. Pakistan beat Argentina 5-3 in the fifth-place play-off of the tournament. Germany won their first title as they beat Australia 2-1 in the final.
2006 Hockey World Cup in Germany saw Pakistan finish at the 6th spot. The Men in Green lost to England 1-0 in the fifth-place clash between the two sides. Germany lifted the second consecutive World Cup, this time in front of their home crowd.
Pakistan’s performances kept getting worse as they finished at the 12th spot in the 12-team tournament held in India. Pakistan only won one match in the tournament as they beat Spain 2-1 in the group stage. They lost the 11th place match against Canada 3-2. Australia emerged as the winners of the tournament, their second title in history.
The Men in Green touched a new low as they failed to qualify for the event. This was the first time in history that Hockey World Cup was played without Pakistan. Australia secured their second successive title as they beat Netherlands 6-1 in the final.
Pakistan managed to qualify for the 2018 edition of the World Cup held in India. They finished 12th in the 16-team tournament as they exited the tournament without registering a single win. They lost the cross-over match 5-0 against Belgium to finish at the 12th spot. Belgium secured their first title as they beat the Netherlands on penalties in the final.
Source: Pro Pakistani