KUALA LUMPUR — The pain of missing out on Asian Games gold will take time to fade, but national hockey stalwart Fitri Saari insists Malaysia will use their 5-1 defeat to defending champions India as motivation to come back stronger.
The Speedy Tigers saw their hopes of winning gold and securing an automatic qualification spot for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics dashed by a clinical India side in the final at the Green Prefectural Gifu Stadium on Saturday.
Fitri admitted the heavy defeat was difficult to swallow, particularly after Malaysia had matched India during the opening two quarters before the defending champions pulled away.
“As a player, I feel I gave everything I had. We knew India had the advantage because they are the defending champions and had prepared very well for this tournament.
“We tried to match them and I think we managed to do that during the first two quarters. Unfortunately, things did not go our way after that and India took their chances when they came,” he told Scoop when contacted.
For Fitri, the disappointment was made even greater by Malaysia’s target of using the Asian Games as their route to the Los Angeles Olympics.
“It really hurts because we came here wanting to win the gold medal and qualify for the Olympics. That was our target from the beginning, so losing the final like this is obviously very painful,” he said.
Malaysia must now take the longer route to Los Angeles through an Olympic qualifying tournament, where they are likely to face several of Europe’s top sides.
“Now we have to go through the Olympic qualifying tournament, where we will face strong European teams. It will not be easy, but we have to accept the situation and continue working hard.
“We will still give everything we have because our Olympic dream is not over. We have to learn from this defeat, improve and make sure we are better prepared for the next opportunity,” Fitri said.
Despite the disappointment, the 31-year-old believes Malaysia can take confidence from their overall campaign in Aichi-Nagoya, particularly their victories over Pakistan and South Korea.
“On the positive side, we managed to beat Pakistan, who have shown a lot of improvement, and we also defeated South Korea here. Those results show that we are capable of competing against strong teams,” he said.
However, Fitri acknowledged that Malaysia must address several weaknesses if they are to close the gap on Asia’s leading sides, with defensive discipline and finishing among the key areas requiring attention.
“We have to make better decisions, especially when we are under pressure. We also need to improve defensively, particularly when dealing with penalty corners because those situations can change the game,” he said.
At the other end of the pitch, Fitri said Malaysia must become more ruthless when opportunities arise.
“When we get chances, we have to take them. Against teams like India, you may only get a few clear opportunities, so we have to be more clinical in front of goal.
“That is something we need to work on because creating chances is not enough. We have to make sure those opportunities end with goals,” he added.
The Speedy Tigers will now turn their attention to the Asian Champions Trophy in India from October 27 to November 5, giving the team little time to dwell on their Asian Games disappointment.
For Fitri, the tournament offers Malaysia an immediate opportunity to begin their recovery and put the lessons from the final into practice. – October 5, 2026