The national hockey team left for Amsterdam, the Netherlands on 22nd April 20222 for a tour of Europe in preparation for the Asia Cup. The Pakistani team left Lahore’s Allama Iqbal International Airport for Amsterdam this morning. Omar Bhatta is leading the 20-member national team.
The Pakistan hockey team will play six matches against the Netherlands, Belgium and Spain in Europe. A three-day training camp will be held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
Match Schedule
The national team will play two matches against the Netherlands on April 26 and 27, in the second round the team will leave for Belgium on April 28 and the national team will play a match against Belgium on April 29. In the last leg of the tour, the national team will play three matches against Spain. The return is scheduled for May 6.
Speaking to the media before leaving for Europe, the captain of the national hockey team Omar Bhatta said that the tour of Europe was important for the Asia Cup and added that the fitness level of the national team has also improved with the skill level. Over two months of training, head coach Ekman has taught the boys about the needs of modern hockey, trying to explain how competing teams can be controlled.
“Foreign coaches have tried to improve a lot of things, including fitness. Matches against the Netherlands, Belgium and Spain will see good hockey. The boys have talent and a desire to do something special,” he said. We all need international matches, the more matches we play, the more experience we will have and the more confidence we will have.
Omar Bhatta said that at present there are more junior boys in the team along with seniors, playing matches with the best teams in the world in Europe will be an opportunity to learn a lot and to overcome the shortcomings before the Asia Cup. We will have time for that.
The captain of the hockey team said that Pakistan’s ranking is very low at the moment, it will take time to bring it up.
Pakistan team defeats the Netherlands by five goals to three
According to Express News, the national hockey team played an aggressive game in the first match scheduled for the tour of Europe from the Netherlands. At the beginning of the game, Pakistan’s Ijaz scored a goal to give the team the lead. In the third and fourth quarters, the Pakistan team not only took the lead but also won the match by five goals to three.
Muhammad Rizwan scored a hat trick for Pakistan while Mubashir and Ijaz scored one goal each. The second match of the national hockey team’s tour of Europe will be played on April 27 against the Netherlands.
It should be noted that the Pakistan team is currently on a tour of Europe to prepare for the Asia Cup. The national team will return home on May 6 after matches with the Netherlands, Belgium and Spain. The Pakistani team won the first match by five goals to three while the Netherlands won the second match by four goals to one.
In view of the World Cup, the Dutch team tested mostly young players instead of seniors in the matches against Pakistan, while seven players also made their debuts for the Pakistani team. The Pakistani hockey team, which is going to Europe to prepare for the Asia Cup, will play matches against Spain in the final round.
The team management says that this tour will give the young players experience of international matches and also give us a chance to make a good combination before the Asia Cup.
