Azlan Shah Cup: Bruised Pakistan, India look to bounce back

Archrivals meet today in crunch battle to stay in contention.

KARACHI: Traditional rivals Pakistan and India will clash today in Ipoh in the Azlan Shah Cup as both battle for a comeback in the tournament.

Both Asian teams are lying in the bottom half of the six-nation event that makes the encounter crucial.

The greenshirts, who were mauled by Australia 6-0 after their opening 4-3 victory against defending champions New Zealand, are placed fourth on the points table. On the other hand, India have yet to score a win, having lost to Australia and South Korea in their first two matches and are in fifth position.

Pakistan’s chief coach Akhtar Rasool expects a thrilling battle.

“India games are always exciting,” Rasool told The Express Tribune.  “There is always pressure and motivation involved in fixtures against India.

“We know that we are pretty much in the tournament and will definitely go for a win,” said the former Olympian. “India are a tough side and they will come up strong after losing their first two matches. We will have to play accordingly today as the match will be crucial for us as well.”

Rasool hinted that changes will be made in the vital encounter.

“We played with four new players against Australia. Definitely, we will consider making changes for this game.”

The coach hoped the team would avoid repeating mistakes made during the drubbing at the hands of Australia.

“We made a lot of mistakes especially in defence and finishing. The players have been briefed about the flaws in the game and hopefully they will come up with a better show.”

India eye comeback against Pakistan

Meanwhile, India’s team management was also optimistic about his team’s fightback.

“We played well in the previous games but unfortunately did not get the desired result,” said Indian team manager Roelant Oltmans, according to the official website of the tournament.

“But I expect the team to improve and correct the mistakes they made. The tournament is far from over and playing Pakistan in our next game requires some planning as they have experienced players.”

Australia are leading the table with six points from two wins in as many matches followed by hosts Malaysia and Korea respectively. New Zealand are at the bottom of the table.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 12^th, 2013.