KUALA LUMPUR: The national netball squad booked their spot in the semi-finals of the Asian Championship with an easy 82-25 win over Taiwan at the OCBC Arena in Singapore today.
The team took their time to settle into a rhythm but began to assert their authority as the match progressed. They found themselves 37-16 up by the end of the second period.
They continued to put Taiwan on the backfoot after the restart and led 56-21 by the end of the third quarter.
Despite their efforts, Taiwan had limited opportunities to attack and were only able to add four more points to their score in the final period.
The win sees Malaysia emerging from the first round as Group C winners. The squad had beaten Brunei 78-22 in their opening game on Saturday.
Captain Nur Syafazliyana Mohd Ali was visibly pleased with her team's performance.
The squad had trained and competed in the Maldives in the lead up to the competition.
"The goal for us is to build on our team strategy with each game we play, that is the main focus in this tournament," said Syafazliyana in the post match on court interview.
"We had gone to the Maldives and gained a lot of experience there.
"They (Maldives clubs) play a very patient game and we learnt a lot from them, especially in regards to when we have to play a different tempo."
Before the semi-finals, the national squad will compete in a second round of group play in Group E – comprised of all previous group winners – which will determine their rankings for the semi-finals.
Malaysia will play Group A winners – most likely Sri Lanka – in their opening Group E match today. The other two teams in Group E are hosts Singapore and Hong Kong.
The finalists of the competition will earn a spot at the Cape Town World Cup next year.