Pakistan has secured them a berth in field hockey's elite annual Champions Trophy to be held in Cologne, Germany, in August. The team won the bid following a 5th place finish at the men's World Cup field hockey tournament in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Friday.
The Pakistanis scored three goals in the last eight minutes to defeat Argentina Friday, 5-3, in the playoff to get the fifth spot.
Penalty corner specialist Sohail Abbas sent a drag flick soaring into the net for his second goal of the match in the 62nd minute to bring Pakistan back into the fast-paced match after it trailed 3-2. Right winger Muhammad Nadeem followed Abbas' equalizer by sending a scorching shot past bewildered goalkeeper Pablo Moreira in the 63rd minute to put Pakistan on course to victory. The win was sealed by center-forward Kashif Jawad's lunging deflection into the goal in the final minute.
In other position matches, England beat host Malaysia, 3-2, for seventh place. The 9th-10th place match saw New Zealand edge India, 2-1. Spain took the match for 11th place by beating Japan, 5-1. South Africa finished 13th, nipping Belgium in sudden death, 5-4. And Poland shut out Cuba, 3-0, to place 15th.
The championship match is on Saturday between Australia and Germany. The bronze medal playoff is between the Netherlands and South Korea.