India face Pakistan at Sultan Azlan Shah today

Kaula Lumpur : With medal hopes hanging in balance India take on Pakistan today (Tuesday) in an intense encounter in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup.Five’time winners India finished with the bronze last year and have won two out of their three encounters in the tournament beating Japan (2-1) and Canada (3-1).Pakistan have won just one game beating Canada 3-1 before losing to New Zealand and Australia. They are currently sixth in the standings. Pakistan have not qualified for the Olympics in Rio this year but are high on motivation to edge past their subcontinent rivals in Malaysia.The two teams last faced each other at the Hockey World League (HWL) Semi Finals in Antwerp with the game ending 2’2. India went on to reach the semifinals of the event while Pakistan s hopes of Olympic qualification were dashed by a loss to Ireland.India s strength lies in their penalty corner conversion with youngster Harmanpreet Singh grabbing his debut chance for the senior team with both hands. The drag flicker already has two goals in the tournament.A win for India will see them make a strong case to enter the medal rounds while a loss for Pakistan will more or less knock them out of contention.