Bhubaneswar: The International Hockey Federation (FIH) on Thursday handed a one-match suspension to Pakistani midfielder and vice-captain Ammad Butt, ruling him out from the last Pool D match against the Netherlands in the ongoing Men’s Hockey World Cup.
Butt was suspended after he was in a rough tackle with Malaysia’s Faisal Saari while rushing to defend a penalty corner in the 40th minute of the game. The Malaysian team then lodged a complaint to the FIH against Butt. The match had ended in a 1-1 draw.
However, Pakistan hockey team manager Hasan Sardar expressed discontent over the FIH’s decision and termed it an “afterthought”.
“It’s an afterthought. If we see the video, it’s clear he didn’t do a harsh dash. We’ve appealed to the FIH and hoping that it would be accepted”, Sardar said.
The Pakistan hockey team also suffered a major blow when skipper Muhammad Rizwan Sr was ruled out of the remainder of the tournament after sustaining a finger injury.
[source_without_link]ANI[/source_without_link]