Sarjit Singh’s Speedy Tigers will look to capitalise on home advantage and aim to reclaim the coveted title which Malaysia won for the first time in 2022 when the 31st edition of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup gets underway in Ipoh tomorrow until Nov 30.

Named after the ninth King of Malaysia, Sultan Azlan Shah, the SAS Cup has long been regarded as one of the most prestigious invitational international tournaments in world hockey.

This year’s competition features a strong field, albeit with the absence of 2024 champions Japan, and runner-up Pakistan, two of the formidable Asian teams.

The curtains go up with the opening day fixtures featuring exciting matches. Reigning Asia Cup and five-time SAS Cup champions India go into a showdown with three-time champions South Korea (4.0pm). The Koreans were winners in 1996, 2010 and 2019.

Malaysia’s Speedy Tigers are slated to face 2025 Nations Cup champions New Zealand in the second match (6.0pm), while Belgium, ranked World No 3, is expected to give the Canadians a rousing welcome in the last match of the day (8.30pm).

Buoyed by the return of forward Faizal Saari, who had announced his retirement from the national team nine months ago, Sarjit is looking towards a much-improved performance from the players in the 31st edition. The Speedy Tigers finished in fourth place last year.

“We don’t want to put any pressure on the players. Every team wants to do well. Hopefully, our players perform and get good results. As you know, for the last 17 months, our target has been the Asian Games. We are trying to rotate the players around. For this tournament, we have two new players (Nur Asyraf Ishak and Zufar Saiful Marsita from Malacca),” said Sarjit at a press conference on the eve of the tournament.

“With the return of Faizal, the team will be built around the experience of four senior players, including captain Marhan Jalil, Fitri Saari, and Faiz Helmi Jali. Our immediate focus is now on the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup. The competition is going to be very challenging for the team with the presence of Belgium, India, Canada, South Korea and New Zealand,” he added.

The Malaysians open their campaign against New Zealand tomorrow, and have scores to settle with the Kiwis following defeats in the last edition of the SAS Cup and the 2025 Nations Cup.

Sarjit, a two-time Olympian, guided the Speedy Tigers to a 6-4 win over New Zealand in the 2024 SAS Cup preliminary round match in his maiden stint as national team coach. However, in the playoff for a bronze medal, the Kiwis triumphed 3-2.

Lady Luck, once again, deserted the Speedy Tigers in the 2024-2025 Nation Cup at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil with New Zealand pulling off a 4-3 victory in the group stage.

For the record, Malaysia won silver medals in 1985, 2007, 2009, 2013, and 2014, and the bronze medals in 1996 and 2019.

Australia have won the tournament a record 10 times, followed by India and Pakistan winning five and three times, respectively.

Meanwhile, India’s head coach Craig Fulton, a South African under whom India won a second consecutive bronze medal at the Olympics, said the current team is in the development process and he is equally hopeful of a good performance from the players in the SAS Cup.

The last time India won the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup was way back in 2010.

Fulton has rested several key players during the SAS Cup, citing the reason is to give youngsters more international exposure tournaments, and an opportunity to rest big names ahead of a busy 2026 calendar that will see them in action at the FIH World Cup and the Asian Games – a direct qualifier for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

The Blue Shirts will be led by Sanjay in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup while some of the big names missing from the team includes skipper Harmanpreet Singh, Jarmanpreet Singh, Hardik Singh and Mandeep Singh.

“We have to adopt a realistic approach. The ideal approach is to win the World Cup and the Asian Games next year. And realistically, it is going to be tough but it is not impossible.”

“We have the squad. We have shown that we can play any team and beat any team on a good day. It’s just a matter of getting consistency. There is still a lot of work to do and the team here is in the development process. It is the ‘A’ team with a few senior players. The opportunity here is precious for every player,” added Fulton.

The Belgians won the 2018 World Cup and 2020 Tokyo Olympics gold medals, and of recent finished second to the Netherlands in the FIH 2024-2025 Pro-League. They have shown that they are a supremely fit and experience side.

“We are making a return after 17 years and we are excited to be playing in this prestigious tournament,’” said Belgium head coach Shane McLeod. “We have been playing a lot of tournaments in Europe, and also against India in the Pro-League. So, we have a good preparation for this tournament.”

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