The Japanese side opened the scoring in the first half after Pakistan’s weak defence let in the Japanese forward from the left wing.

In the second half, Pakistan then took the lead against the opponents turning the tie around with two goals in quick succession. The Japanese side then equalised late to send the game to a penalty shootout.

Japan succeeded to convert all four penalties in the shootout while Pakistan could manage only one out of three.

The Pakistan reached the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup 2024 final after a gap of 13 years.

Both the Asian nations had played out a 1-1 draw in their round-robin encounter and Pakistan’s coach Roelant Oltmans had expected another tight match in the final against Japan.