KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian women's hockey team achieved their target at the Asian Games with a 2-1 win over Thailand in the fifth-sixth classification match today.
The Malaysian team went to Hangzhou with fifth place as their target. And coach Nasihin Nubli's women hit the bullseye to qualify for the Olympic Qualifier next year.
Teams who finish second to fifth in the Asiad will advance to the Olympic qualifier.
Thailand, who lost to Malaysia 4-1 in the Sea Games in May, gave the Malaysian Tigresses a tough time and scored first in fact.
Inpa Kunjira gave Thailand an early fifth-minute lead, but Hanis Nadiah Onn equalised for Malaysia in the 12th minute.
And just when the Malaysia looked like they were in trouble, Nuraini Abdul Rashid scored off a penalty corner in the 56th minute.
Meanwhile, the Malaysian men's team dropped from 10th to 12th in the world rankings after a disastrous sixth placing in the Hangzhou
Asiad.
And Malaysia are expected to drop further to 14th after the African and South American continental qualifiers are completed.
The five men's teams from the Asian Games who qualified for the Olympic Qualifiers in January, next year, are Malaysia, Pakistan, South Korea, Japan and China.
The seven who have qualified from Europe are Austria, Belgium, Ireland, Britain, Germany, Spain and Ukraine. From Oceania, the contenders are New Zealand.
