MALAYSIA are keeping their fingers crossed they will avoid a meeting with Indonesia in the Axiata Cup semi-finals tomorrow.
The draw in Kuala Lumpur today will decide the match-ups, and Malaysia could either face All-Star Asia or top seeds Indonesia.
The eight-team preliminary stage ended on Wednesday with Indonesia topping the standings on 24 points, followed by All-Star Asia (19) in second. Both these teams are seeded and will not face each other in the semi-finals.
Third place Thailand (19) and Malaysia (17), on the other hand, will have to leave it to the luck of the draw to decide their fate.
Team captain Chong Wei Feng, who arrived from Jakarta yesterday said: “Of course we want to avoid playing Indonesia in the semi-finals.
“There is, however, nothing we can do about it. We can only hope for a favourable draw, but if that does not happen, then we must be ready.”
Wei Feng, who featured in the 4-0 defeat to Indonesia in the preliminary stage, believes the team are better prepared for the knockout round.
“I must admit that we played badly against the Indonesians and Thailand in the preliminary stage, but some of our players were tired because of the ongoing Purple League as well.
“There are also a few players who are nursing minor injuries, but we are all fired up to do our best in KL.
“We have achieved our target by reaching the semi-finals and now, we have to rise to the occasion on home soil to defeat whoever we meet.”
Malaysia are the defending champions but if Wei Feng and his teammates fail to produce their best, their reign will be over tomorrow.