On this day: Pakistan won a historic hockey gold at 1958 Asian Games in Tokyo

May 30, 1958 is a red-letter day in the history of Pakistan sports. It was on this day in Tokyo that Pakistan won its first major hockey title – the Asian Games – marking the start of a glorious era that saw the country becoming the sport’s biggest powerhouse.

The 1958 Asian Games saw the introduction of hockey to the continental event for the first time. Arch-rivals Pakistan and India dominated the five-nation contest that also included hosts Japan, South Korea and Malaya (now Malaysia).

The event was contested on a round-robin format. Pakistan, who had narrowly missed the Olympic gold in Melbourne in the 1956 Games two years ago, were in ruthless form in Tokyo. They ran roughshod over their rivals scoring thumping wins against Japan (5-0), South Korea (8-0) and Malaya (6-0).

In the final round-robin game, Pakistan faced India, who had also won their previous three games. This meant that the match would decide who wins a historic inaugural goal at the Asiad.

Rough game

The game began on a bad note for Pakistan as their captain Abdul Hameed Hameedi had to leave the field after a charge by Indian defender Balkrishan Singh left him with a dislocated ankle.

The incident was one of the low points of the rough game in which Pakistani ambassador in Japan, Omar Hayat had to intervene to cool things down between the two teams.

Pakistan dominated the best part of the match but were unable to capitalize on a series of goal-scoring opportunities. The otherwise prolific Naseer Bunda squandered an open-net chance while center-forward Afzal Manna’s powerful shot from the top of the circle hit the goalpost bar.

The action-packed encounter ended in a goalless draw but that was enough to give Pakistan their first major international title.

Both Pakistan and India had equal points with three wins and a draw each. Since it was a round-robin format the winner was decided on the basis of goal average. Pakistan’s goal average of 19-0 was superior to India’s 16-1, making them the first Asian Games hockey champions.

The title-winning triumph in Tokyo gave Pakistan the breakthrough they had been looking for. The star-studded team then went on to create another piece of history by winning Pakistan’s first-ever Olympic gold in Rome in 1960.

The hockey gold in the 1958 Asiad wasn’t the only thing to cheer about for Pakistan.

The Pakistanis finished sixth on the medals table in the Asian Games held from May 24 to June 1. The 1958 Asiad featured 20 nations with the Pakistanis finishing ahead of India on the medals table.

Pakistan won a total of 26 medals including six gold, 11 silver and 9 bronze. Among the medalists were legendary sprinter Abdul Khaliq who won the 100m meters gold, Ghulam Raziq, Mubarak Shah, Muhammad Iqbal, and Muhammad Nawaz, who won the javelin throw gold.

The Indians could just win 13 medals despite a stellar show from ace athlete Milkha Singh.

Pakistan’s performance in 1958 was in stark contrast to the previous edition of the Asian Games in which Pakistan finished at an embarrassing 31^st position out 38 nations with just one silver and two bronze medals. India, meanwhile, finished fourth with 106 medals that included 28 gold. Pakistan even finished behind countries like Macau and Myanmar.