No bad vibes between rivals India and Pakistan

RELATIONS between India and Pakistan have been complicated due to a number of historical and political events.

But the Pakistan hockey team featuring in the World Cup, are just happy to play in the tournament.

Pakistan goalkeeper Imran Butt said that despite the political differences between the two neighbouring countries, they felt like they are in their own country.

“We are happy with the warm welcome we received since arriving in India last week. It feels really nice to receive such tremendous support from the Indian fans in our opening match against Germany at Kalinga Stadium (on Saturday night),” said Imran.

“There is so much of similarity between Pakistan and India as we speak the same language and also eat the same food.

“And it will be good if we can revive the hockey matches series between India and Pakistan, which we used to play the past few years.

“We are also pleased with the pitch condition at Kalinga Stadium as I believe it is one of the best hockey stadiums in the world.

“The atmosphere here is really good, and I believe that all the teams are enjoying their stay in India,” said Imran.

Pakistan used to be the powerhouse in hockey as they won the World Cup four times in Barcelona in 1971, Buenos Aires in 1978, Bombay in 1982 and Sydney in 1994.

World No. 13 Pakistan, who failed to qualify in the last World Cup in The Hague, Holland in 2014, lost 0-1 to Germany on Saturday.

Asked about the match against Germany, Imran said that they played well but were unlucky to lose the match.

“The defeat is a wake-up call for us that we need to play much better in our next match against Malaysia (on Dec 5).

“We need a win over Malaysia to book our place in the second round,” said Imran, who has represented Pakistan 138 times since 2009.