The Pakistanis, who won a quadrangular event in Dublin last week, were leading England during the best part of the match but fell short of securing full points.
The Greenshirts now play European powerhouse Germany in their next match on Friday, well aware of the fact that a win over their rivals will enhance their chances of winning the trophy ahead of three higher ranked teams – Netherlands, Germany and England.
“The boys have the confidence to win this tournament,” Khawaja Junaid, the Pakistan manager, told Arab News on Thursday. “All they need is to give their hundred percent in the remaining matches of the tournament,” he stressed.
Pakistan’s optimism springs from the fact that Sohail Abbas, their short corner specialist, is currently in a highly prolific form. The veteran defender, who holds the record for scoring the highest number of goals in international hockey, has been converting short corners in almost every game since last year’s Asian Games in China where the Pakistanis won the gold for the first time in 20 years. Last week in Dublin, Sohail scored both the goals in Pakistan’s 2-0 triumph over Ireland in the final of a four-nation tournament.
“Sohail Abbas is a huge plus point for our team,” said Muhammad Imran, the Pakistan captain. “He is in superb form which is one of the reasons why I’m confident that we can do well even against top teams like Germany and Netherlands,” he added.
On Wednesday, Sohail took Pakistan 1-0 ahead when he capitalized on a short corner in the eighth minute. But Richard Smith equalized for England before Pakistan’s mercurial striker Shakeel Abbasi took his team 2-1 ahead with a brilliant solo effort. But in the very next minute, England captain Barry Middleton edged a pass into the goal to make it 2-2.
For Pakistan, the turning point of the match came in the 64th minute when Sohail Abbas was sent off the field with a yellow card.
“It was a huge setback for us because England created more opportunities after Sohail was sent off and finally managed to earn a draw,” said Imran.
