Malaysia versus South Korea: Day 8 of the Azlan Shah Cup – Preview
South Korea is set to face the host team of Malaysia on the eighth day of the Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey Cup being played at the Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey Stadium, Ipoh city of Malay, on May 12.
Malaysian Team
Malaysia made some shocking changes in the final line-up a day before start of the Azlan Shah Cup. Few of experienced players were not included in the final squad due to injuries. These included Mohamed Amin Rahim and Azreen Rizal Nasir. To fill the empty
place, youngsters from Development Project 2013 including, Mohd Izzat Mohd Rahim and Mohamed Azammi Adabi were promoted in the national team.
On the whole, the Malaysian team has an outstanding track record in the region with winning the South-East Asian Games for 13 times out of total 14 competitions.
Regardless of past record, the host side did not show any impressive performance in the current invitational. They faced Australia, India, New Zealand and Great Britain, but remained unsuccessful in all the competitions. The upcoming fixtures against South
Korea and Pakistan will be crucial for the future of the players contesting the event, as the clean-sweep results may affect their preparations for the Olympic Qualifiers.
Korean Team
South Korea, one of the strong hockey team in the International sport, mostly retained position among the top five squads. It was the co-winner of the last edition of the Azlan Shah Cup with the Indian team, as the final game was not played owing to heavy
downpours and water-logging turf. The two finalist teams for the first time were selected as winners of the invitational. Apart from this triumph, they solely clinched the title of the Azlan Shah Cup back in 1996. Besides this, they also had captured four
titles in the Asian Games respectively in the 1986, 1994, 2002 and 2006.
In the current invitational, they are seemed quite unimpressive with a win, a draw and two defeats. In the opening game, they unexpectedly defeated India while lost to Pakistan in the very next game. The match between Korea and New Zealand concluded with
a draw while they were easily beaten by Australia.
Apart from the track record, the Korean side is one of the unpredictable squads and that make them dodgy.
Players to watch
From the host side, Tengku Ahmad Tajuddin will be a star to look for on the field. From the other side, Jang Jong Hyun will centre of attention onto the field that has made an optimistic notion in the invitational.
Head-to-Head Statistics
Interestingly, the last two games between South Korea and Malaysia were ended with draws. They faced each other in the 2010 Asian Games and Azlan Shah Cup which were ended respectively at 2-2 and 1-1.
Prediction
Considering the current performances from the two sides, South Korea is expected to defeat Malaysia. As expected, the fixture will be a nip-and-tuck competition with a win for Korea by 2-1.
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