Sultan of Johor Cup will be tough: Kamran

KARACHI: Pakistan junior hockey team head coach Kamran Ashraf says that the Sultan of Johor Cup will be a tough tournament.

Speaking to The News before leaving Islamabad for the event, he said that all participating teams, except Pakistan, are using the event to finalize their preparations for the Junior Hockey World Cup 2025, which will be held in November and December in India.

It is worth mentioning that Pakistan will not participate in the Junior Hockey World Cup 2025 due to the strained relations between Pakistan and India. Kamran said that despite the limited time for training and preparation, the players underwent intense practice sessions. “We worked hard on our weaknesses, especially in defense, goalkeeping, and penalty shootouts — the areas where the team struggled in past tournaments,” he added.

He further stated that Pakistan will not play any practice matches before the main event. “After reaching Malaysia, we will only practise among ourselves. It is, however, an advantage that we will reach there two days before the tournament begins, which will help the players adjust to the Malaysian weather,” he said. Kamran said that India, Australia, Malaysia, Britain, and New Zealand are strong opponents. “Every match will be challenging and competitive. Let’s see how our boys perform. We have trained them according to the strengths and playing styles of the rival teams,” he remarked. He added that field goals and penalty corner drag flicks are Pakistan’s main strengths, and the team plans to capitalise on these during the tournament.

Pakistan will play their first match against Malaysia on October 11, Britain on October 12, India on October 14, New Zealand on October 15, and Australia on October 17. The event follows a round-robin format.

Kamran said that Pakistan will focus on an attacking style of play. “Attack is the best defense. Our forwards and drag flickers are skillful and have proven themselves in recent matches,” he said. “The forwards will aim to score field goals, and if unsuccessful, we will try to win penalty corners to create more scoring opportunities.”