Pakistan, a three-time winner of the annual Champions Trophy, beat Belgium 2-0 in Australia on Sunday. The win was a consolation for the disappointment in their opening match of the nine-day men's hockey tournament in Melbourne when they went down 3-1 to the Netherlands.
Pakistan denied Belgium any points from the European minnow's first two games in its debut at the eight-nation tournament with a dominant second-half showing in which Shafqat Rasool scored a second with 45 seconds to spare after Abdul Haseem Khan had put Pakistan ahead after 56 minutes.
Belgium acquitted itself well in its first game, going down to Australia in a hard-fought match 4-2.
The hosts have won the Champions Trophy four times in succession and are hoping to restore a reputation dented after being eliminated by Germany in the semi-finals at the London Olympics.
Germany went on to beat Netherlands and take gold, while Australia came in third. The Champions Trophy has been played every year since 1980, with Australia winning 12 times, Germany 9, Netherlands 8 and Pakistan 3.
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