New Zealand as defending champions retained their FIH Nations Cup title with a commanding performance, handing Pakistan a 6-2 defeat in the final match at Kuala Lumpur’s National Hockey Stadium on Saturday.
New Zealand got off to a strong start in the summit match, scoring twice in the first few minutes but both goals were disallowed.
Unfazed, the Black Sticks kept up their pressure and quickly overtook the Pakistani defense, outpacing and outclassing them.
By the end of the first quarter, New Zealand had a 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Coslett Scott and Heha Sam.
As Thomas Dylan, Findlay Sean, and Boyd Scott added to the score in the second quarter, Pakistan found it difficult to stop the Kiwi attack, and the score was 5-0 at the half.
In the third quarter, Hayat Zakaria finally put Pakistan on the scoreboard by putting in a goal and cutting the deficit.
The score remained at 5-1 going into the final quarter after the green shirts displayed fleeting signs of recovery and earned five penalty corners in the penultimate quarter but were unable to take advantage of any of them.
Coslett Scott scored his second goal and New Zealand’s sixth in the fourth quarter, essentially clinching the victory.
Sufyan Khan of Pakistan scored a consolation goal from a penalty corner, but New Zealand won 6-2.
