Pakistan vs. South Korea: Azlan Shah Cup – Field Hockey Preview
Pakistan is set to face South Korea in the second day of the 20th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup at the Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey Stadium in Malaysian city of Ipoh, on Friday, May 6. Both teams have won their opening day
matches as Pakistan edged past New Zealand, while South Korea outplayed India.
Pakistan
After winning a gold medal in the 16th Asian Games, the Pakistan hockey team is on a high. Before meeting the Black Sticks, Pakistan had not played any international hockey. Nevertheless, the team showed an impressive performance
against New Zealand, winning the match by two goals.
What makes the victory even more significant is the fact that Zeeshan Ashraf, the winning captain at the Asian games, was not a part of the squad. Muhammad Imran – the newly appointed skipper, took to the opportunity to showcase his team-leading skills
and didn't let the team down.
Many senior players including Waseem Ahmed, Sohail Abbas, Shakeel Abbasi and Rehan Butt were a part of the squad and helped youngsters play alongside them in the team. Considering the significance of the Azlan Shah Cup, the Greenshirts are very excited
and ready to face a few of the world’s best hockey squads. A good performance in the Azlan Shah Cup will serve as a confidence booster for Pakistan ahead of the Champions Trophy and the 2012 London Olympics.
In their encounter against South Korea, Pakistan will mainly rely on their experienced players, particularly Shakeel Abbasi, Sohail Abbas and Rehan Butt.
South Korea
Similar to the Pakistan outfit, the Korean hockey squad is also a combination of experienced players and youngsters.
South Korea kicked off their Championship with a win against India on Thursday, May 5. They started the game on a high and defeated a lacklustre Indian side by 3-2. Cho Suk Hoon, Yoon Sung Hoon and Jang Jong Hyunv were amongst the scorers
on the day.
Meanwhile, the two custodians of Korea, including Lee Myung Ho and Kim Jae Hyeon, also gave a highly resilient performance and blocked numerous strikes from the opposite side.
The Koreans will be relying on the combination of both, their attacking style of play and their defense to counter the experienced Pakistan attack.
Head to Head
The last time both teams met was in the semifinals of the Asian Games 2010, held in Guangzhou, China. Pakistan got the better of their opponents in that match, and beat South Korea 4-3.
The two sides played quite an evenly contested semifinal last year, the proof of which was the 1-1 score at the end of regulation time period. In the shootout round though, the Pakistani skipper made a crucial save and made the victory possible for
his team.
In the 2009 Asian games however, South Korea edged past Pakistan in the final by 1-0. Considering they won the game in regulation time and Pakistan couldn’t score a field goal, the Koreans would be hoping to repeat their 2009 heroics.
Prediction
Although the odds are pretty even and both teams have looked solid in their opening encounters, Pakistan have a slight edge over their opponents in terms of the last head-to-head.
Nevertheless, South Korea have the potential to shock their opponents, as evident from the four goals that they scored against India. Hence, the tie has all the ingredients for an enthralling contest and the odds are 50-50.
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