Six countries gear up for Asian Cup
JAKARTA (JP): Six countries are gearing up for the fourth Asian Cup Baseball Championship at the Bung Karno Baseball Stadium in Senayan, Central Jakarta.
They are Hongkong, Malaysia, Pakistan, Thailand, Uzbekistan and host Indonesia. Malaysia was appointed to replace India whose team could not afford the airfare.
Participants said on Saturday that they were ready to give their all at the biennial championship starting Sunday which will run for eight days employing a round robin system.
"This is our first international outing since we established our baseball federation in 1999. I hope we will be able to perform well here," Uzbekistan manager Rustam Abdukadirov told a press conference.
Similar hopes were also aired by the managers of the Malaysian and Hongkong teams.
"Baseball is not yet popular in Malaysia. We expect to promote the sport more back home with our participation here. We are very grateful that Indonesia agreed to host the event," Malaysian manager Muhammad Isa Muhammad Noor said.
"Imagine, we don't have a single baseball field back home while there are at least three fields here. We are forced to use any old field for our practice sessions."
The absence of proper baseball fields is also a major problem for Hongkong which uses soccer pitches to practice on.
"We only hope for our government's support for the building of baseball fields back home," said manager Shu Lam Kwok.
Participants are eager to eager to take the top spot in the event as the champion of event will be promoted to the first division of the Asian Baseball Federation league in March in Taipei.
China, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines and host Chinese Taipei have qualified for the division.
Pakistan, better known for its cricketing achievements, promised to field its best players for Sunday's match.
"Baseball is cricket's sister so we don't have any problems with it. I'm sure Pakistan will grab the title," said manager Khawar Shah.
Thailand's manager Thanakij Heinghom also expressed the same optimism saying his team was eyeing a place in the finals.
Indonesia's manager Joedo Asmoro said his team would do its best to grab the title before its home crowd, especially as the event is the first to be staged here.
President of the International Baseball Amateur Federation (IBAF) Aldo Notari of Italy is expected to attend Sunday's opening ceremony as well as chairman of the National Sports Council (KONI) Wismoyo Arismunandar and Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso.
On the first day, Indonesia will challenge Pakistan followed by Thailand facing Uzbekistan and Hongkong against Malaysia. (nvn)