BROTHERS IN ARMS WON’T LET MALAYSIA BE IN DIRE STRAITS

Faizal and Fitri won’t allow Malaysia to be in dire straits

KUALA LUMPUR: Faizal and Mohd Fitri Saari are brothers who could not be more different from each other.

The 25-year-old Fitri is a cool and down-toearth character while his elder brother Faizal is rather short-fused.

Faizal also has a reputation for losing his temper in matches. His fiery temperament has cost him dearly at times as he has been sent off in local competitions like the Razak Cup and Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) for confronting umpires.

But as contrasting as their personalities are, Faizal and Fitri share the same high profile in Malaysia’s hockey team.

They’re both pillars of the side competing in the World Cup in Bhubaneswar, India, starting on Wednesday. Fitri runs the engine room in midfield while Faizal is always on the goal hunt as a striker.

The highly-skilled 27-year-old Faizal, noted for his consistent goal scoring, is also a topnotch penalty corner drag flicker and could be one of the stars in Bhubaneswar.

He top scored in the Asian Champions Trophy in Muscat, Oman, last month by firing in eight goals – four field goals and four strikes via penalty corners – to help Malaysia win the bronze.

Faizal was also joint top scorer with India’s Harmanpreet Singh at last year’s Asia Cup in Dhaka, Bangladesh, with seven goals to help Malaysia finish runners-up behind India.

Faizal, according to the 25-year-old Fitri, has been a temperamental person since he was a child.

“He gets annoyed over small issues or when someone says something about his behaviour,” said Fitri.

“He also doesn’t listen to advice will do things his own way. But I’m used to his attitude.

“Despite being hot-headed, Faizal’s the one who encouraged me to take up hockey when I was in standard six (studying at Kok Pauh Primary School in Rantau Panjang).

“School teacher Fakaruddin (Mokhtar) encouraged Faizal to play hockey when he was 10-year-old and my brother then influenced me to take it up.

“So I’m happy that I heeded my brother’s advice as I went on play for my school, state and then country.

“Today, we’re proud to feature in our second World Cup,” added Fitri, the father of twin sons.

Faizal admits he has to learn to keep his temper in check as the tension builds up in a match.

“But I’ve changed thanks to Fitri’s advice. He always calms me down when I lose my temper in a match.

“I’ve learned to control my temper and focus more on my game,” said Faizal.

“Fitri and me have played many times together in tournaments and there were some good and bad memories. The bad memories include finishing last among 12 teams in the previous World Cup (in The Hague, Holland in 2014).”

Faizal, who was a big letdown at his first World Cup in 2014 where he failed to score in all six matches, vows to play consistently well and to score in every match in Bhubaneswar.

“There’re high expectations on me to get the goals as I’m the country’s top forward.

“The memory of the 2014 World Cup where I failed to score a single goal still haunts me. Even Fitri managed to score a goal in Holland.

“We are better prepared this time and we can give former world champions Holland, Pakistan and Germany a run for their money,” added Faizal.

Malaysia will make their ninth appearance in the World Cup and they start their campaign against Holland on Dec 1 before taking on Pakistan (Dec 5) and Germany (Dec 9).

With these two brothers in arms, Malaysia can at least hope that they won’t be in dire straits when they take on the big guns.