India to face Pakistan in Asian Champions Trophy in Malaysia

The last time India and Pakistan met was also in Malaysia, during the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, when India thrashed Pakistan 5-1 despite resting several senior players.

Asian Champions Trophy will be the first outing for India post Rio Olympics.

The Indian men’s hockey team would take on Pakistan in an international competition for the first time in six months when the teams face off at the 4th Asian Champions Trophy in Kuantan, Malaysia, in October.

The Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) has announced the schedule for the tournament, to be held from October 20-30, 2016. This would be the first edition of the tournament since it was included as the third continental ranking event from Asia by the FIH earlier this year and the first post Olympics, where India was the only team from the continent to qualify.

Besides India and Pakistan, the other teams in the competition are China, Korea and Japan besides host Malaysia. The tournament would be played in the round-robin format. It would also be the first outing for India post Rio Olympics. The last time India and Pakistan met was also in Malaysia, during the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, when India thrashed Pakistan 5-1 despite resting several senior players.

India’s schedule: October 20: vs Japan; October 22: vs Korea; October 23: vs Pakistan ; October 25: vs China; October 26: vs Malaysia; October 29: classification matches; October 30: Final.