The Pakistan national hockey team is coming to Dhaka next November to play a three-match series as part of the Asia Cup. If all goes well, Sufian Khan and Faisal Qadir are scheduled to arrive in Dhaka on November 10.
Bangladesh Hockey Federation General Secretary Lt. Col. (Retd.) Riazul Hasan told Prothom Alo today, “The Pakistan team’s tour has been finalized. We have already sent them their proposal. We have also mentioned that the first match there will be on November 12. Hopefully, they will come to Dhaka a day or two before that.”
The 12th edition of the Asia Cup Hockey was held in Rajgir, Bihar, India from August 29 to September 7. Despite finishing sixth, the Bangladesh hockey team is not playing in the direct World Cup qualifiers.
This time, with Pakistan withdrawing from the tournament, the International Hockey Federation (FIH) has introduced special rules. According to the rules, only the top five teams in the tournament will be eligible to play in the World Cup qualifiers. The sixth-placed team will have to play a play-off with Pakistan.
Bangladesh will play a three-match play-off series at home after finishing sixth. Only by winning this series will the red-green representatives be able to play in the World Cup qualifiers.
The Hockey World Cup will be held in Belgium and the Netherlands in August next year. The Asia Cup champions will play directly in the round of 16. The remaining five top teams, along with the winners of the Pakistan-Bangladesh play-off, will also play in the Hockey World Cup qualifiers in February.