Bangladesh began their Road to the FIH World Cup Qualifiers series with defeat and ended the same way, suffering a 3–0 whitewash against Pakistan. Across the three matches, the hosts conceded a staggering 26 goals while managing to score only five.
“We have a problem—we can’t hold our composure till the end,” admitted Rakibul Hasan after the final match. “Even when we are ahead, we concede late goals. We must overcome this issue.”

The last game at the Maulana Bhasani Hockey Stadium on Sunday saw Pakistan dominate once again, cruising to a 10–3 victory. Bangladesh had previously lost 8–2 and 8–0 in the opening two matches, highlighting a clear gulf in quality.
Throughout Sunday’s match, Pakistan grew sharper and more ruthless, while Bangladesh strug-gled in attack and defence. The fluid interplay seen in earlier games between players like Pushkar Khisa Mimo and Hasan Jubair Niloy was absent.
Bangladesh also squandered several clear chances, with Rakibul, Abdullah, and Obaidul Joy missing opportunities in the 6th, 13th, 24th, 44th, and 59th minutes. Shohanur Sabuj’s failure to score from an open goal in the 15th minute epitomised their struggles.
Pakistan capitalised on set pieces, converting nine of their 15 penalty corners. Sufyan Khan scored six goals, Abdul Rehman two, and Ahmad Nadeem one. Their only field goal came from Waleed Rana.
Bangladesh’s three goals included two from open play and one penalty-corner conversion by Ashraful Islam, who had been mostly ineffective until then.