SHAH ALAM — The upcoming FIH Hockey Nations Cup will serve as the clearest measure yet of Sarjit Singh’s tenure as national head coach since his appointment last year.
The third edition of the tournament, which begins on Sunday at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil, also doubles as a qualifier for the FIH Pro League — raising the stakes for the 62-year-old and his youthful Malaysian squad.
Sarjit, who had previously requested more time to work with the team, now believes the players are in a stronger position, having benefited from recent training tours to Australia and South Korea.
The team are set to play one final friendly against Wales on Friday before the real challenge begins.
“All 20 players will get a chance to play. This will be a dry run for all of them — our last bit of preparation before the Nations Cup,” said Sarjit at a sponsorship event in Glenmarie today.
“Motivation is high. The players have been with me for a year now, and we understand each other better. They also understand what the coaching team needs.
“Our ultimate target remains the same, and that is to do well at the Asian Games.”
He was speaking at the partnership event between the Malaysia Hockey Confederation (MHC) and Bermaz Auto.
The automotive distributor, which represents brands such as Mazda and Kia, will be sponsoring 10 vehicles — five CX-5s and five CX-8s — for MHC officials’ use during the competition, which runs from June 15 to 21.
Sarjit reiterated that reaching the semi-finals is a realistic target for Malaysia, who are drawn in Group B against Pakistan, New Zealand and Japan.
“If we win our first two matches, we’ll likely make the semis — but it won’t be easy. Every team is here with the same goal. Winning the first match against Pakistan would give us a good start, and doing well in the second (New Zealand) would put us in a strong position,” he said.
“Everyone wants to win, but if you play well and don’t get the results, it means little. So we must be clinical.
“To be more clinical, we need more opportunities. And if we take our chances, our defence becomes easier. But if we are constantly under pressure, we’ll struggle to create chances.”
Sarjit acknowledged that this squad is still relatively inexperienced, with many players yet to play extensively at the international level. Still, he remains optimistic that the past year of development and preparation will begin to bear fruit.
“This is a young team, and the hope is that they’ll gain more international exposure through tournaments like this. We’ve come some way. It’s important for us to stay on the right track and set clear targets for ourselves,” he added.
Also present at today’s event were MHC deputy president Datuk Ahmad Najmi Abdul Razak, Bermaz Auto executive chairman Tan Sri Ben Yeoh, MHC vice president Datuk Seri Anil Sandhu, and MHC chief executive officer V. Jayanandhan. — June 11, 2025