Kuala Lumpur, Sept 28: Having brought themselves within sniffing distance of their maiden Asia Cup hockey title, India will seek to re-establish their regional supremacy when they take on arch-rivals Pakistan in the final here today.
The final, which promises to be a mouth-watering proposition, would be the ultimate in the game of one-upmanship with the Asian giants getting a chance to meet in the final of the quadrennial event after 14 long years.
While Pakistan won the last encounter between the two in 1989, India are yet to win this prestigious title since its inception in 1982 and this hunger to win the maiden Asia Cup might just give the them an edge over their continental rivals.
On paper, however, Pakistan enjoy a slight advantage with India missing the services of ace penalty corner expert Jugraj Singh and their forward line not exactly in peak form.
But to predict the outcome of any India-Pakistan match is foolhardy as both are capable of raising their games to an altogether different level when pitted against each other.
The last time that the arch-rivals played a final of a major tournament was in the SAF Games in Chennai in 1995 when India outplayed Pakistan 5-2 for the title.
But the current Pakistan team has hardly any player from that 1995 squad to carry the bitter memories of the final and the young side is all charged up to put it across India whom they beat 4-2 in the league match on Wednesday.
Bureau Report