Malaysian Hockey Player Faiz Helmi Relies on World Cup Experience Against Germany

Veteran Speedy Tigers defender Faiz Helmi Jali is set to leverage his significant experience in the upcoming Hockey World Cup, particularly in Malaysia's challenging opening match against Germany. This marks Faiz Helmi's fourth consecutive World Cup appearance, a milestone he shares with captain Muhammad Marhan Mohd Jalil and teammate Faizal Saari.

Faiz Helmi, who has faced Germany in previous World Cups and friendlies, acknowledges the German team's balanced strength across all positions. He emphasized his role in guiding the younger, less experienced players. "My job is to help the team through the experience I have in this fourth edition," Faiz Helmi stated. "Besides offering encouragement, we senior players are responsible for translating the coach's tactics to the younger players so they understand better. What's important is proving it on the field. What the coach directs, that's what we need to execute perfectly."

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My job is to help the team through the experience I have in this fourth edition. Besides offering encouragement, we senior players are responsible for translating the coach's tactics to the younger players so they understand better. What's important is proving it on the field. What the coach directs, that's what we need to execute perfectly.

Following their match against Germany, Malaysia is scheduled to play France and then world No. 1 Belgium. Faiz Helmi advised his teammates not to be overly concerned with opponents' rankings. Instead, he stressed the importance of maximizing the World Cup experience as valuable preparation for the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, which is the team's primary target. "What the coach says is right because if we look at the rankings, all teams are above us," he explained. "So, we need to seize the opportunity to play well at the World Cup, not to be pushovers. This is good preparation for us to move on to the Asian Games because we have targets there too. We need to gain a lot of input for the Asian Games and not think too much that we are the underdog at the World Cup."

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What the coach says is right because if we look at the rankings, all teams are above us. So, we need to seize the opportunity to play well at the World Cup, not to be pushovers. This is good preparation for us to move on to the Asian Games because we have targets there too. We need to gain a lot of input for the Asian Games and not think too much that we are the underdog at the World Cup.