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Two totally contrasting matches were played out in Pool D with the first between Holland and Malaysia being a supercharged, fast, and one-sided affair while the second between Germany and Pakistan resembled a close and intense game of chess being played out on a hockey pitch.
Stefan Kermas' German side who had a rather unpleasant experience in Bhubaneswar last December when seven of their players suddenly fell ill in the latter stages of the tournament began in characteristic style, as they sought to probe the Pakistan defence with a long series of crisp, vertical passes.
Pakistan, on the other, was rather uncharacteristically cautious in their approach but managed to keep the German strikers at a safe distance for the most part, with Imran Butt rushing to the rescue when the white shirts did manage a goalbound strike.
Let us take a look at 3 factors that may have been significant in determining the ultimate course of the vital match in the World Cup's toughest pool.
#3 Pakistan attempt to play the Germany way
The match between Pakistan and Germany was expected to be a clash between two sides who play different styles of hockey, but spectators who expected the Men in Green to display their free-flowing game and flair up front were in for a massive disappointment.
Hassan Sardar, one of the most stylish centre-forwards of all time looked on from the bench as the four-time Champions tightened things up at the back and kept it tight throughout the duration of the match.
What they failed to do, however, was to play to their strength, and test the German defence with their enviable dribbling and dodging skills. While keeping the structure intact was fine, Pakistan was totally unadventurous, managing rare forays into the opposition half and not committing too many men forward.
Rizwan Sr. had a quiet and uneventful evening, so much so, that the Pakistan captain seemed invisible for a while when in fact he had spent 47 minutes on the pitch. Pakistan's principal playmaker managed to manufacture a few midfield passes but no meaningful assists which could trouble the German defence.
Ali Shan had an off day too while Umar Butta was tireless as ever on the field but failed to inject energy into the forward line.
Sadly, Pakistan played the German way in order to contain their opponents but conceded a lone goal and lost 3 points which rendered the entire strategy ineffective.
#2 Long and intense midfield battle
Neither side was willing to concede an inch - and neither side was willing to take the slightest risks, as a dodgy game was played out in the centre of the pitch.
The Germans managed 12 circle entries while Pakistan managed half that number. Strangely, enough, there was only one penalty corner earned by the Germans during the entire sixty minutes while neither Mubashar Ali nor Aleem Bilal could show off their drag-flicking skills as Pakistan failed to earn a single PC.
Both sides played in ambitious long crash balls, a vast number of them travelling harmlessly past the backline as the strikers they were meant for were playing in withdrawn positions.
The Germans just about managed eight shots on target while Pakistan managed three, as the men up front were held up in traffic and could find no way through a crowded midfield.
Tobias Walter in the German goal had to deal with a few tricky balls that meandered inches away from the edge of the goal line, but Imran Butt was forced to pull off a few good saves.
#1 Thorough, disciplined and efficient Germans win the day
Long vertical passes, switching across flanks and switching back to the centre almost in revolving fashion was the hallmark of the German game which Pakistan attempted to emulate rather unsuccessfully.
The accuracy of the passes for Kermas' side was just under 70% while for Pakistan less than 60% of passes found their intended target. It was some thorough, dogged, and disciplined work on the pitch by the Germans which helped them come out on top and indeed, the blemishes, if any, were few and far between.
As compared to the teams of the past, Pakistan defended admirably and sacrificed their natural attacking instincts with a view to cut off space for the German strikers.
Rizwan Sr. and co. did so with some success but the fact that they did allow the Germans to score without being able to restore parity simply did not serve the overall purpose.
If only Pakistan had managed to find the back of the net with the few chances and half-chances that came their way, the story of the match could have been remarkably different.
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