Pakistan beat South Africa to finish 11th at FIH Hockey World Cup

Pakistan finished 11th at the FIH Hockey World Cup 2026 on Friday after beating South Africa 4-3 on penalties in the classification match at Wagener Stadium.

The 11th-place finish marked the Green Shirts' best in 20 years as they secured 12th spot in the 2010 and 2018 editions of the mega event, while failing to qualify for the World Cup in 2014 and 2023. Their previous best finish came at the 2006 edition, when they secured sixth place.

The enthralling fixture got off to a contrasting start as South Africa took an early lead in the eighth minute through Trevor de Lora, while Dayaan Cassiem doubled their advantage three minutes into the second quarter.

Pakistan, however, staged a remarkable comeback in the second quarter, scoring through Afraz and Mohammad Ammad to neutralise South Africa's lead heading into halftime.

Rana Waheed Ashraf pulled Pakistan ahead in the second minute of the penultimate quarter, which, however, concluded with the scoreboard reading 3-3 as Mustaphaa Cassiem struck for South Africa in the 40th minute.

The final quarter saw both teams make desperate attempts to net the tie-breaker, and South Africa ultimately succeeded when Mustaphaa converted a penalty corner in the 55th minute.

But Pakistan staged a sensational comeback as Muhammad Hammaduddin struck in the final minute to make it 4-4 and ultimately forced the match into the penalty shootout.

Mustaphaa, who scored a brace in regulation time, stepped up to take the first shot for South Africa and successfully converted. Zikriya Hayat took the first shot for Pakistan and made it 1-1.

The two teams remained inseparable after two chances apiece as South Africa's Calvin Davis and Pakistan's Umar Mustafa also scored from the spot.

Hans Neethling and Jamie Seales then fumbled South Africa's next two attempts, during which Hannan Shahid struck for Pakistan, who pulled ahead at 3-2.

The Green Shirts only needed Rana Waheed Ashraf to convert the penalty stroke to prevail in the fixture, but he faltered and Mustaphaa, taking the last shot for South Africa, buried the ball into the back of the net to make it 3-3 with Pakistan having an attempt in hand.

Eventually, it all came down to former captain Ammad Butt, and the veteran held his nerves calm under pressure and scored the winner for Pakistan.

At the FIH Hockey World Cup 2026, Pakistan played six matches, winning two, losing three and drawing one.

England defeated Pakistan 4-1 in the opening group match at Wagener Hockey Stadium in Amstelveen on August 15.

On August 17, Pakistan drew 3-3 with Wales. In their final group match on August 19, traditional rivals India defeated Pakistan 5-3, eliminating them from the race for the semi-finals.

In the classification stage, Pakistan were placed in Pool G. They began with a 4-3 victory over Japan on August 22, but lost 4-2 to New Zealand on August 24.

Pakistan then faced South Africa in the 11th-place match, which ended 4-4 after regulation time, but Pakistan won 4-3 in the penalty shootout.

The Green Shirts scored a total of 17 goals and conceded 23. Hannan Shahid was Pakistan's leading scorer at the tournament with four goals.

Pakistan have been crowned world champions four times, winning the titles in Barcelona, Spain, in 1971; Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1978; Mumbai, India, in 1982; and Sydney, Australia, in 1994.

There was a time when Pakistan dominated international hockey.

Today, a lack of resources, failure to keep pace with modern developments in international hockey, and administrative inconsistency within Pakistan hockey over the past several years have severely damaged the reputation of the national sport and diminished Pakistan hockey's standing on the world stage.