KUALA LUMPUR: Defender Muhammad Najmi Farizal Jazlan has been named skipper of the 18-man national men’s hockey team for the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup 2022 competition to be held at the Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey Stadium in Ipoh, Perak from Nov 1-10.
National head coach A. Arulselvaraj (pix) said, in a statement issued by the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) today, that Muhammad Najmi will take over the captain’s armband from Muhammad Marhan Mohd Jalil, who is injured.
He said the Speedy Tigers will have two goalkeepers, five defenders, five midfielders and six forwards, with 22-year-old Muhammad Amirul Hamizan Azahar set to earn his first senior international cap.
“We chose the 18 players based on their physical condition as we, the coaches, feel that the players need to be strong and physically fit to play six matches in 10 days,” he said, adding that his men are all set for the tournament.
The Speedy Tigers will take on South Korea on Tuesday (Nov 1), Pakistan (Nov 2), South Africa (Nov 4), Egypt (Nov 5) and Japan (Nov 7).-Bernama
