THE national men’s hockey squad’s hopes of reaching the final of the 2025 Asia Cup Championship were dashed after they went down 3-4 to South Korea in their last ‘Super Four’ match in Bihar, India, today.
Sarjit Singh’s men began strongly when Fitri Saari opened the scoring with a field goal in the ninth minute.
However, South Korea drew level through a penalty corner conversion by Kim Hyeonghong in the 24th minute.
Nik Aiman Nik Rozemi restored Malaysia’s lead with a 29th-minute goal, sending the Speedy Tigers into halftime ahead 2-1.
Entering the second half, Syed Mohd Syafiq Syed Cholan extended Malaysia’s advantage by netting their third goal from a penalty corner in the 31st minute.
South Korea then fought back to equalise through field goals by Oh Seyong and Lee Jungjun in the 44th and 50th minutes, respectively.
Their momentum surged when Hyeonghong struck again with a penalty corner in the 51st minute, sealing the victory for South Korea.
The result meant Malaysia missed out on an automatic slot for next year’s World Cup, as only the champion of the tournament will qualify.
The Speedy Tigers will return to action tomorrow in the third-place playoff, where they will face either India or China, who are scheduled to play later tonight. – Bernama