KUALA LUMPUR: Defending champions Malaysia downed Indonesia 4-2 at the 2023 Southeast Asian Games (Sea Games) in Phnom Penh today to secure their place in the final of the women's indoor hockey event.
Iren Hussin was the star for Malaysia as she notched a hat-trick with strikes in the sixth, 11th and 27th minutes at Dinosaur Park Hill.
Nur Atira Ismail scored the other goal for Malaysia in the 15th.
Indonesia, coached by Malaysian K. Dharmaraj, replied through Desi Wardani (ninth) and Nuraini Sugiarti (20th).
It was sweet revenge for the national squad, who lost to Indonesia in the semi-finals of the Asia Cup in Bangkok last year.
They will next face Thailand in the final tomorrow.
Earlier on Wednesday, Thailand and Malaysia drew 0-0 in the round-robin format competition.
National coach Badrul Hisham Osman praised his girls' for getting the better of Indonesia with some exceptional play.
"In the last quarter, Indonesia pressured our defence and earned a few penalty corners, but we did well to stop them from scoring," said Badrul.
"We will have a video (review) session tonight to study how we can overcome Thailand in the final.
"We need to come up with a good strategy to make sure we retain the Sea Games title."
Meanwhile, the national men's squad kept its 100 per cent record in the competition after edging Indonesia 3-2 today.
It was their fifth win in a row in the tournament, which also uses a round-robin format.
Firdaus Omar (13th), Abdul Khaliq Hamirin (35th) and Syed Syafiq Syed Cholan (37th) scored for Malaysia, while Candra Prawesti (sixth) and Muhammad Firdaus (30th) replied for Indonesia.
Malaysia will once again play Indonesia in the final tomorrow.
National coach Hanip Che Halim said today's win over Indonesia gave his charges a psychological advantage going into the final but was not taking anything for granted.
"The final will be a different ball game. We have to come up with some good tactics to win it," Hanip said.
ENS
KW: seagames2023, 2023 Southeast Asian Game, Sea Games. Phnom Penh, indoor hockey, Iren Hussin, Nur Atira Ismai
