Asian Champions Trophy: South Korea start title defence with victory over Japan; Malaysia thrash Pakistan

Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], August 3 (ANI): Defending champions South Korea began their Asian Champions Trophy crown defence on a winning note, defeating Japan 2-1 in a tight match at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium here on Thursday. 
It all started in the sixth minute, when Ryoma Oooka scored the tournament's first goal, before Cheoleon Park equalised in the 26th, sending both teams into half-time even at 1-1.
JungHoo Kim struck the back of the net just five minutes into the third quarter to put Japan ahead. The Koreans then launched a series of persistent strikes. However, the Japanese defence held firm to earn the three points.
Japan made a strong start in the first half. The Samurai Japan counterattacked on both flanks and managed to avoid South Korea's press by playing the ball softly out of tight spaces. They also defended in numbers, making it tough for South Korea to penetrate their circle and score.
When the Koreans got the ball to the edge of the 30-yard circle, they were met with a swarm of blue shirts. Japan jumped on the counter after cutting the passes into the circle.
South Korea took the lead early in the second half when Jung Hoo Kim put the ball into the net after collecting a pass from the right. Korea raced ahead on the counter, not allowing Japan's defence to recover in time, allowing Kim to go ahead of his marker and score.
Then it was Korea's chance to close the gaps and attack on the break, forcing Japan to seize the initiative. Japan came near to tying the game in the fourth quarter, but Korea's Jaehyeon closed the gap and blocked a close-range opportunity.
On Thursday, an efficient Malaysian team defeated a young Pakistan team 3-1 at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium in their first Asian Champions Trophy match. Pakistan finished aggressively but was undone by errors, as Malaysia's Faizal Saari delighted spectators with three assists in the victory.
Malaysia seized the initiative to create the tempo on the ball, while Pakistan sought to disrupt Malaysian passes in its own half and catch their defence up the pitch. Muhammed Khan's penalty corners were misplaced, and Hafizuddin Othman made numerous key saves throughout the game. Khan had a dismal game, with no goals to show for his penalty corner hits.
With three minutes remaining in the second quarter, Faizal and Ashari connected twice to give Malaysia a merited 2-0 lead at the interval. Faizal was spotted in space, and the midfielder delivered a pass through Aqeel Ahmad's legs to find Ashari, who circled the keeper to score. Pakistan lost the ball at the halfway line immediately after the restart, and Faizal danced his way past the Pakistan defenders to play in an unmarked Ashari, who had the simple task of putting it past Akmal Hussain.
Pakistan had opportunities to reach the Malaysian circle early in the second half but squandered them due to poor decision-making.
Malaysia scored their third goal against the run of play when Rahim found Faizal down the right channel, who sprinted half the length of the pitch and into the circle before setting up an easy finish for Shello Silverius. Silverius afterwards suffered an injury as well.
Malaysia breathed a sigh of relief as Hafizuddin remained alert late in the second half with a run of big saves. He got a foot to Abdul Shahid's tomahawk before saving a penalty stroke off Abdul Rana and then a sprawling hop to keep Abdul Rehman's close-range effort out. But, with five minutes remaining, Rehman would score with a finish from the left. (ANI)