Sultan Azlan Shah Cup 2017 | India denied a spot in the finals by disciplined Malaysia
The Indian side needed a victory over the Malaysian side by more than two goals to secure a place in the final of the tournament but the hosts turned the tables on the favourites when they scored the only goal of the match in the 50th minute to end their campaign on a victorious note.
First Quarter
The Indian side was very well aware of what was needed to qualify for the finals and started on the offensive as the first minutes of the match were played primarily in Malaysia's half. However, Malaysia almost fired home in the 9th minute of the quarter only to be denied by the valiant Harmanpreet Singh, who intercepted the ball and cleared the lines for India. The blue army and the hosts played the rest of the quarter cautiously as the scoreline read 0-0.
Second Quarter
India switched to attacking mode in the early minutes of the second quarter when Mandeep Singh won the first penalty corner for the blue brigade. Rupinder Pal Singh was able to get his shot on target but the Malaysian goalie Haziq Samsul gloved away the fierce shot to keep the score level.
India stepped up their attack in the 23rd minute when Talwinder Singh used a reverse shot to test Samsul, but once again the Malaysian shot-stopper was equal to the task when he quickly got down. Next, Akashdeep Singh's terrific wing play won India another penalty corner but Rupinder Pal Singh was unable to convert the penalty corner as he powered the ball over the goal. India continued to attack as SV Sunil stole the ball from the Malaysians inside their penalty area but India failed to score again as the experienced Indian player struggled to get a shot away.
Despite the efforts, the Indian team lacked the attacking rhythm that had been the cornerstone of the tournament thus far. However, at the other end of the field, the defence appeared to be holding their own against the Malaysian attackers. The half ended with a scoreline of 0-0 with India still needing to score three goals to book a place in the final.
Third Quarter
Malaysia started the second half aggressively as they took the game to the Indians and won a penalty corner in the 33rd minute but were denied. The hosts piled on the pressure winning another penalty corner but the result was the same as Rupinder Pal Singh closed in quickly, not allowing the striker to take a shot. The Indian forwards kept failing time and again in the quarter to get a shot on target, while the Malaysians looked menacing on the counter attack. The quarter once again ended without a goal and India had the uphill task of scoring twice in the last quarter to make it to the finals.
Fourth Quarter
At the start of the fourth quarter, the Indian coach, Roelant Oltman took off the keeper to add an extra player to the outfield and boost India's attack. Manpreet Sigh, however, did not help the initiative as he received a green card which reduced India to 10 men for two minutes. Malaysia continued to attack and they won a penalty corner but the Indian defence stood resolutely as they prevented the hosts from scoring. Malaysia, once again, won a penalty corner on the 50-minute mark and, this time, the hosts converted it through Shahril Sabbah. The corner should ideally have been saved by the goalkeeper Chikte and India surely missed PR Sreejesh today. Chinglensana Singh had a chance to pull one back for the visitors but he shot the ball over the goal. India
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