New Delhi: The International Hockey Federation (FIH) said that it will try the match between India and Pakistan in the qualifying tournament for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics to be played in Europe. The International Hockey Federation on Thursday released the draw teams, which have placed India and Pakistan in two different groups and both teams can face in the Olympic qualifying tournament. The FIH will soon declare a draw for the Tokyo Olympic qualifiers and according to a Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) source, it could face India-Pakistan.
In the qualifier to be held in September-October, the top teams will have to play the lower-ranked teams, India and Pakistan have won one qualifying tournament each and can face both in the draw. Seven other teams will have a chance to make it to the Olympics, with Pakistan, Egypt, South Korea, Spain, Germany, New Zealand, India and some other teams competing.
Pakistan is ranked 17th in the world rankings and the team could not qualify for the Rio Olympics. There is tension between the two countries over the Kashmir issue. A source said, 'It is not necessary that we play India in the draw but if that happens then FIH will probably do this match in Europe because the conditions in India and Pakistan are not favorable to play.
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