KUALA LUMPUR – National hockey head coach Sarjit Singh admits that his side “lost out on experience” following the Speedy Tigers’ 4-4 draw against Pakistan in their Nations Cup opener in Gniezno, Poland, today.
Having clashed 36 times before the tournament, Pakistan boasted a higher winning percentage of 55.56%, with their latest victory over Malaysia coming in the recently concluded Sultan Azlan Shah Cup.
Sarjit, who was brought in by the Malaysian Hockey Confederation on a two-year contract, selected 18 players from a pool of 30 from his revamped side for the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, where Malaysia finished fourth.
Sarjit said although he was impressed with his charges’ overall performance against Pakistan, he hoped they would make use of their opportunities in the penalty box in their remaining pool matches.
“We played well enough to win the match, but it ended in a draw. We were good in the first two quarters, but we were under pressure in the third and fourth quarters, where we started to make mistakes and allowed Pakistan to get the draw.
“The commitment level of my players was outstanding, but we lost to our opponents due to their greater experience. We created enough chances to win the match, but our finishing was poor.
“We need to make fewer mistakes in the ‘D’ in the future and take our chances by scoring goals for the rest of the tournament.
“For now, we need to recover well and stay focused for our next pool match,” said Sarjit.
Malaysia’s four goals were scored by Fitri Saari (4th, 42nd minutes), Azrai Abu Kamal (7th) and Faizal Saari (11th).
Pakistan’s goals were scored by Abdul Rehman (32nd), Sufyan Khan (43rd), Hannan Shahid Butt (52nd) and Abu Mahmood (60th).
Malaysia’s last victory against Pakistan came in the Asian Champions Trophy in Chennai, India, in August last year.
The Speedy Tigers are grouped with France, Pakistan and Canada in Pool B at the Nations Cup.
Sarjit’s charges will take on Paris Olympics-bound France in their second group match on Sunday. – May 31, 2024