Hockey Nations Cup final: New Zealand beat Pakistan by 6-2

KUALA LUMPUR: New Zealand secured the FIH Hockey Nations Cup title by beating Pakistan 6-2 in the final on Saturday.

Pakistan on Friday reached the final after beating France in a penalty shootout after two sides were levelled at 3-3 in 60 minutes of play.

GAME OVER. Newzeland 5 Pakistan 0. We have never had in recent memory Newzeland score so many goals against Pakistan. Its always a close game between the two. Pakistan has fed itself to the lions today by not settling down. @FIH_Hockey 2025 pic.twitter.com/ZsQzrrV6nB

— Dr. Adnan (@dr_adnann) June 21, 2025

The final saw New Zealand assert early pressure, scoring twice in the opening minutes. However, both goals were disallowed due to fouls.

The Black Sticks eventually broke through in the sixth minute, netting the opening goal. They doubled their lead in the 15th minute, finishing the first quarter with a 2-0 advantage.

New Zealand continued their dominance in the second quarter, scoring three more goals, one in the third minute and others shortly after, to extend the margin to 5-0.

Before the half time, Pakistan made just one attempt to goal, while New Zealand made 11 attempts, with five bearing fruit.

However, within 10-minutes of play after the half time, Pakistan netted their opening goal. They succeeded in marking another entry on the scoreboard by scoring their second goal from a penalty corner.

Meanwhile, New Zealand continued their aggressive play, making attempts to score more goals. Minutes after the end of play, they succeded in netting their sixth goal from a plenty corner.

After the end of second quarter, former Olympians had urged the Pakistani side to adopt a more aggressive, attacking approach in the remainder of the match. However, Green Shirts couldn’t help themselves sticking to the defensive strategy, owing to the New Zealand’s aggressive play.

Pakistan had booked their place in the final with a thrilling victory over France in the semi-final, while New Zealand overcame South Korea to secure their spot.