JAKARTA: National No 1 goalkeeper S. Kumar said his heart shattered into pieces after Malaysia lost 3-1 in shoot-out to Japan in the final of the Asian Games on Saturday.
He did not hide his disappointment, as Malaysia had taken a 5-2 lead, before Japan fought back to draw level at 6-6 and then win the shoot-out.
Japan, as hosts of the 2020 Olympics, did not need the gold medal as much as Malaysia did to qualify.
"What else can I say? I am heartbroken. We played so well to take a 5-2 lead and at that juncture, I already started thinking that we will win gold and qualify for the Olympics.
"We (all the players) need to accept the defeat and be happy with the silver medal. We should have killed off them match with our early lead, but we let Japan back into the match," he said when met after the sizzling final.
Malaysia have yet to win gold in the Asian Games after 60 years of competing, and the script on Saturday was same as Guangzhou, China, in 2010 where Malaysia lost to Pakistan in the final. - BERNAMA
