Pakistan Under-21s Beat Canada 6-2 and China 8-3 to Top the Sultan of Johor Cup 2026 Table
Pakistan under-21s beat Canada 6-2 on 18 October 2026, a day after an 8-3 win over China, and lead the Sultan of Johor Cup on 6 points. Scorers and next match.
Pakistan's under-21 hockey team beat Canada 6-2 at the Sultan of Johor Cup in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, on Sunday 18 October 2026, a day after beating China 8-3. Pakistan top the five-team table with 6 points and a goal difference of plus 9 after two of their four round-robin matches. Asam Haider has scored 3 goals, and Pakistan play hosts Malaysia next on Wednesday 21 October at 4:35 pm PKT.
We read both official match records on the International Hockey Federation's tournament management system on 19 October 2026, including the goal lists, cards and line-ups. The tournament runs from 17 to 24 October at Taman Daya Hockey Stadium, with the final on 24 October. How to follow the rest of it from Pakistan is in the page on watching Pakistan at the Sultan of Johor Cup.
Pakistan beat Canada 6-2 with 12 penalty corners on 18 October
Pakistan led 2-0 after the first quarter. Fayyaz Hamza scored from a penalty corner in the 9th minute and Ali Hamza added a field goal in the 14th. Rana Abdul Sami made it 3-0 in the 25th minute before Gurnoor Bhullar pulled one back for Canada on the half-hour. Waleed Rana scored in the 38th, Abiram Yogeshwaran replied in the 45th, and Asam Haider from a penalty corner in the 51st and Adeel in the 54th finished it.
Pakistan won 12 penalty corners to Canada's 2 and scored from two of them. The match started at 5:05 pm local time in light rain at 25 degrees. Saif Ullah was shown a green card in the 45th minute, and Canada's Josiah Campbell got one in the first minute. The umpires were Ren Tianhe of China and Palani Kumar of Malaysia.
| Minute | Scorer | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | Fayyaz Hamza (Pakistan) | Penalty corner | 1-0 |
| 14 | Ali Hamza (Pakistan) | Field goal | 2-0 |
| 25 | Rana Abdul Sami (Pakistan) | Field goal | 3-0 |
| 30 | Gurnoor Bhullar (Canada) | Field goal | 3-1 |
| 38 | Waleed Rana (Pakistan) | Field goal | 4-1 |
| 45 | Abiram Yogeshwaran (Canada) | Field goal | 4-2 |
| 51 | Asam Haider (Pakistan) | Penalty corner | 5-2 |
| 54 | Adeel (Pakistan) | Field goal | 6-2 |
Pakistan came from 1-3 down to beat China 8-3 on 17 October
The opener on Saturday 17 October was closer than the score. Saif Ullah put Pakistan ahead in the 13th minute, but Liang Haolin scored twice for China in the 15th and 18th and Wang Yubo converted a penalty corner in the 25th. At 1-3 after the second quarter had started, Pakistan were behind to a side they would expect to beat.
Seven unanswered goals followed. Muhammad Farooq scored from a penalty corner in the 30th minute, Waleed Rana levelled in the 37th, and Fayyaz Hamza, Ghulam Mustafa and Muhammad Usman scored in the 39th, 43rd and 44th. Asam Haider converted a penalty stroke in the 55th and a penalty corner in the 57th. Pakistan won the third quarter 4-0 and the fourth 2-0.
Discipline was the one weak spot. Sami Ullah was given a 5 minute yellow card in the 40th minute and Muhammad Farooq a 10 minute yellow in the 53rd, with a green for Muhammad Shaheer in the 18th. Pakistan still scored twice while Farooq was off. Pakistan had 8 penalty corners and a stroke; China had 4 corners.
Pakistan top the table on 6 points with Japan and Malaysia on 3
Five teams play a single round robin of 10 matches, and the top two meet in the final. After the first two days Pakistan are the only side with two games played and two wins. Japan beat Canada 8-1 on 17 October and Malaysia beat China 3-0 on 18 October, so both have 3 points from one match.
| Team | Played | Won | Lost | Goals for and against | Goal difference | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pakistan | 2 | 2 | 0 | 14 for, 5 against | +9 | 6 |
| Japan | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 for, 1 against | +7 | 3 |
| Malaysia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 for, 0 against | +3 | 3 |
| China | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 for, 11 against | -8 | 0 |
| Canada | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 for, 14 against | -11 | 0 |
A win over Malaysia on 21 October would take Pakistan to 9 points. Malaysia could then only match 9, and Japan are the only side who could pass it. Pakistan's plus 9 goal difference would count for a lot in any tie on points with Malaysia, though we could not read the tournament regulations and say so below.
Asam Haider leads the scoring with 3 goals, and nine players have scored
Asam Haider has 3 goals, a stroke and two penalty corners. Fayyaz Hamza and Waleed Rana have 2 each. Saif Ullah, Muhammad Farooq, Ghulam Mustafa, Muhammad Usman, Ali Hamza, Rana Abdul Sami and Adeel have 1 each. That is 10 scorers in 14 goals, with 5 of the 14 from penalty corners and 1 from a stroke.
Muhammad Ammad captains the side, Syed Hussain is the coach and Ayaz Mahmood the manager, according to the official line-ups. Ahsan Mahmood and Ihtesham Muhammad are the goalkeepers. The 18 names on the team sheet were the same in both matches.
- Ahsan Mahmood (goalkeeper), Asam Haider, Ghulam Mustafa, Rana Abdul Sami, Muhammad Shaheer, Adeel.
- Ihtesham Muhammad (goalkeeper), Muhammad Farooq, Sami Ullah, Usman Ghani, Muhammad Yahya Najeeb, Saif Ullah.
- Waleed Rana, Fayyaz Hamza, Ali Ansar, Muhammad Ammad (captain), Ali Hamza, Muhammad Usman.
Pakistan have never won the Sultan of Johor Cup, and this field has no Australia or India
The tournament's own site records that Pakistan have never won the under-21 event, with one final, in 2016, lost 1-3 to Australia. The 2026 field is Canada, China, Japan, Malaysia and Pakistan. Australia and India, who have played most editions, are not in it this year, which makes the final on 24 October a real target.
The senior men's side sit 12th in the FIH world rankings, as we set out in the page on Pakistan's men's hockey ranking, and the junior results feed the pipeline for the road to the LA28 Olympics. The two match records are on the FIH system at Pakistan v Canada and Pakistan v China.
Common questions
What was the score in Pakistan v Canada at the Sultan of Johor Cup 2026?
Pakistan won 6-2 on 18 October 2026. Fayyaz Hamza, Ali Hamza, Rana Abdul Sami, Waleed Rana, Asam Haider and Adeel scored.
What was the score in Pakistan v China?
Pakistan won 8-3 on 17 October 2026 after trailing 1-3 in the second quarter. Asam Haider scored twice.
Who is top of the Sultan of Johor Cup table?
Pakistan, with 6 points from two matches and a goal difference of plus 9. Japan and Malaysia have 3 points from one match each.
When is Pakistan's next match?
Against Malaysia on Wednesday 21 October 2026 at 7:35 pm local time, which is 4:35 pm PKT, then Japan on Friday 23 October at 2:05 pm PKT.
Who captains Pakistan's under-21 team?
Muhammad Ammad, according to the official line-ups. Syed Hussain is the coach.
Has Pakistan ever won the Sultan of Johor Cup?
No. The best finish is the 2016 final, lost 1-3 to Australia, according to the tournament's own site.
How we verified this
What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.
We read the official match records for Pakistan v China (match 1) and Pakistan v Canada (match 3) and the competition page for the Sultan of Johor Cup 2026 on the FIH tournament management system on 19 October 2026, including goals, cards, penalty corner counts, line-ups and the standings. Pakistan's record in the event comes from a preview on the tournament's own website, which was written before the 2025 edition. Not verified: the tie-break order in the tournament regulations, which we could not open. Malaysia is three hours ahead of Pakistan, and the PKT times are our conversion.
About the author
Tax, Bills and Technology Writer
Ali Akhtar is a young and curious voice here at Pakistan Era. He is currently pursuing his A-Levels and has a growing interest in Pakistan’s changing industrial landscape and educational trends. Ali likes to write in a way that helps him explain and explore the world around him. His writing reflects the perspective of the new generation navigating the evolving trends of Pakistan where technology, youth innovation, and shifting opportunities are reshaping the country’s future.
