Skipper Mohamed Madzli Ikmar said yesterday that they had achieved a good measure consistency in the tournament at the Kuantan Hockey Stadium and it had boosted much of their confidence to take on a Pakistan, who have strengthened their side with the recall of several experienced players.
“I would rate our chances as 50-50. We are playing well and we have a good chance at extending our win over the Pakistanis,” he said.
“But we need to be cautious. The defence will be the one that will have the bear the burden as mistakes at the back can be costly against a side who have the world’s best penalty corner taker in Sohail Abbas.”
Malaysia defeated Pakistan 3-2 in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup tournament in Ipoh last month. The previous two matches at the 2007 Asia Cup in Chennai and the 2006 Doha Asian Games ended in draws, 3-3 and 1-1 respectively.
“It has been close in our matches against Pakistan. We must check their players early and avoid giving away penalty corners,” added Madzli.
“More importantly, the players need to follow the strategy the coaches come up with for the match. Pakistan are very individualistic as a team and it will only take one player to make the difference. This is where we need the discipline to keep at our roles even if they start to dominate the game.”
The Malaysian backline for the three group matches against South Korea, Bangladesh and Japan remained unchanged with Madzli partnering Mohamed Amin Rahim, Mohamed Shukri Mutalib and Jiwa Mohan.
Madzli said that Jiwa’s presence had given them added confidence as he was a very experienced player.
“I’m not sure if the same back four will be fielded against Pakistan but we have come up with a good understanding. We know each others’ game well and complement each other,” he said.
Madzli said that besides Sohail the other Pakistani to watch out for is Waseem Ahmad, whose passes upfront are quite deceptive.
“Waseem is a real danger. They also have other players like Haseem Khan Shakeel Abbasi and Saqlian Mohamed. Anyone of them can pose a threat to us,” he said.
Coach Tai Beng Hai said that his players would not crumble under the intense pressure Pakistan were expected to pile on them.
“We are not going to have it our way even though recent meeting have given us the edge. Tomorrow’s match will be different with a lot more at stake. But there is no reason not to go into the match with confidence,” he said.
The national team have already achieved the top four target set by the Malaysian Hockey Federation.
“The aim should be to win the title and I want the players to pursue that target. We have a chance to do it this time,” said Beng Hai.
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