Asian Games: How far can the Speedy Tigers fall?

KUALA LUMPUR: The moment of truth finally arrives for the under-fire national men's hockey team when their Asian Games campaign begins on Sunday against lowly Uzbekistan in their Group B opener at the Gifu Prefectural Green Stadium.

World No. 15 Malaysia are expected to ease past the world No. 45 Central Asian side, but a convincing victory would help build confidence in a tournament that offers the champions a place at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

The Speedy Tigers will then face world No. 25 Oman on Tuesday, followed by world No. 48 Thailand (Sept 24), world No. 12 Pakistan (Sept 26) and world No. 20 China (Sept 28).

Malaysia will be looking to make amends at the Asian Games after finishing last at the recent World Cup, where they had targeted a quarter-final spot.

Coach Brendon Carolan's team are under pressure to deliver and achieve their target of reaching the Asian Games final.

The Speedy Tigers have had an underwhelming season.

Besides finishing last at the World Cup, they also failed to meet their target at the Nations Cup in South Africa, where they finished fifth.

Malaysia have never won Asian Games gold, with their best results being silver medals in 2010 (Guangzhou) and 2018 (Jakarta).

Carolan's first task is to guide the team into the final before they turn their attention to earning the Olympic berth.

Malaysia have not qualified for the Olympics since Sydney 2000.

Sunday's match will be Malaysia's first against Uzbekistan in a tournament, and Carolan's men need a convincing victory to gain confidence ahead of tougher matches.

Group B's semi-final places are expected to be contested among Pakistan, Malaysia, and China, who are coached by Australian Anthony Farry.

Former national player Maninderjit Singh said the Speedy Tigers were yet to recover from their defeat by Japan at the 2018 Asian Games.

"This year will determine whether we recover or fall further towards an irreparable state on the world stage.

"India and Pakistan are expected to be the leading contenders for Asian Games gold, given that they participated in the recent Pro League and finished higher than Malaysia at the recent World Cup.

"Hosts Japan and South Korea could also upset the form book."

Tomorrow's fixtures

Group A: India vs Indonesia (2pm), Japan vs Sri Lanka (4pm)

Group B: Malaysia vs Uzbekistan (12pm), Pakistan vs Thailand (6pm)