KUALA LUMPUR – National hockey head coach Sarjit Singh has admitted that his team may face challenges in next month’s Asian Champions Trophy (ACT) without first-choice goalkeeper Hafizuddin Othman and Syed Syafiq Syed Cholan.
The Speedy Tigers, who finished as runners-up in the previous edition held in Chennai, India, will be fielding a team with an average age of 24 for the tournament, which is scheduled to take place in Inner Mongolia, China, from September 8 to 17.
Speaking to Scoop, Sarjit revealed that Syed Syafiq is unable to commit to the national team due to personal reasons, while Hafizuddin is still recovering from an injury.
The 32-year-old Hafizuddin, who has 107 international caps and has been Malaysia’s first-choice custodian since 2020, is recovering from a dislocated right shoulder, an injury he sustained during a friendly match in Poland in May.
“It’s a big blow for us; we will be missing two of our most important players for the ACT. However, we need to move on and work with what we have for this year’s tournament.
“Additionally, I have chosen several players in the current squad who didn’t get a chance to play in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup and Nations Cup tournaments.
“As I promised before, I will give all the players equal opportunities to play under my guidance. The coaching staff and I will also look at bringing in more players to the national team after this year’s Tun Abdul Razak Cup.
“We recently started scouting for some quality players in the recently concluded Sukma. Several of them are on our radar, and we are ready to mould them to make them better,” Sarjit said when contacted.
Sarjit also expressed hope that his young team can reach the semi-finals in this year’s ACT.
“We have the potential, and I’m hoping for a podium finish, at least by reaching the semi-finals.
“Things are moving in the right direction, and we are working step by step. In time, we will become better,” he added.
For the ACT, Malaysia will now rely on second-choice goalkeeper Zaimi Mat Deris. Zaimi was the main man between the posts in Hafizuddin’s absence during the Nations Cup in June, where Malaysia finished seventh out of nine teams.
Sarjit has recalled Sabah-born goalkeeper Adrian Andy Albert, as third-choice keeper Che Shahrul Azmi Che Saufi is also injured.
This year’s ACT will see Malaysia competing for the coveted trophy against defending champions India, South Korea, Pakistan, Japan and hosts China.
The Speedy Tigers will take on Pakistan in their opening match on September 8. – August 31, 2024