New Zealand stuns Pakistan

S. Thyagarajan

Ipoh: Fortitude was a factor that New Zealand exemplified on Monday when the team came back from a 1-2 half-time deficit to subdue Pakistan 3-2 in the Azlan Shah hockey tournament. The Kiwis could not have bargained for a better start in the competition and understandably coach Shane McLeod was pleased by the outcome.

In contrast, the Pakistani coach, Shahid Ali Khan conceded that his team was totally disjointed and was devoid of any trace in aggression in the second half for no palpable reasons.

He admitted that the experimental formation being attempted for this tournament had failed. With no point from two games, lost by the same margins, Pakistan faces an uphill task to reach the podium in this five-nation tournament.

Everything rolled well for the in-form Malaysia, which outplayed Egypt 4-1, scoring three in the second half. Chua Boon Huat deflected in two penalty corners in the final minutes.

Malaysia plays India on Wednesday.

Judged within the framework of quality, the Pakistan-New Zealand encounter seldom rose beyond the plane of mediocrity. Being too individualistic, Pakistan displayed no traces of the virtues of teamwork in the front; nor did the midfield show the consistency needed to keep a formidable opponent like New Zealand under check. Clearly shocked by the early goal by debutant Payesh Bhana, the Pakistanis stirred themselves to some high voltage attack, Shakeel Abbasi being conspicuous. A penalty corner goal by Muhammad Imran injected a filament of confidence, which was boosted further when Muhammad Imran produced a neat hit from a penalty corner.
Chances evaporate

Any hope of Pakistan taking advantage of the lead in the second half was soon nullified as the proceedings began. It was New Zealand that wrested the initiative and came up with a few eye pleasing patterns.

Joel Baker who fluffed a chance for the equaliser in the first half, emerged the play-maker threading moves and troubling the rival defence that was clearly slipping into a pool of errors. Haig Nicholas profited immensely from a fumbling defensive work.

Three minutes before the final whistle, Joel Baker swerved in neatly but was obstructed by Zeeshan Ali. Dean Couzins made no mistake with the ensuing penalty stroke.

Malaysia’s new coach Tai Beng Hai must have been the happiest man in the country on Monday. His debut win against Pakistan on the opening day enhanced his stature as a performing coach, and the win against Egypt almost vindicated his elevation from the junior level.

That Malaysia had to work hard against a tough set of players from Egypt should not be masked under the big 4-1 win. For the major part of the first half, the exchanges were even, and at some point the Egyptians looked like taking over.

A lone goal by Ismail Abu close on halftime, somewhat shifted the trend. When Engu Malik scored, Malaysia tightened the grip but Abd El Hakeim restricted the leeway giving his side a chance to share the points.

In the last 10 minutes, the Egyptian defence sunk into a pool of errors, conceding as many as four penalty corners. The Malaysians headed by the veteran Chua Boon Huat made good use of them by netting two goals in quick succession.

With six points from two matches, Malaysia is on top of the table. Tuesday is a rest day.

The results: New Zealand 3 (Payesh Bhana, Haig Nicholas, Dean Couzins) bt Pakistan 2 (Muhammad Imran 2). Malaysia 4 (Ismail Abu, Chua Boon Huat 2) bt Egypt 1 (Abd El Hakeim).

Courtesy: The Hindu