Nickname: Speedy Tigers

How they qualified: 2nd Place – 2022 Men’s Hockey Asia Cup

Notable honours: 8th Place – Olympic Games (1972), 4th Place – Hockey World Cup (1975), 6th Place – Champions Trophy (1993), FIH Champions Challenge 1 Bronze medallists (2014), Commonwealth Games Silver medallists (1998), Asian Games Silver medallists (2010), Asia Cup Silver medallists (2022), Asia Cup Bronze medallists (2007), Sultan Azlan Shah Cup gold medallists (2022), 4x Sultan Azlan Shah Cup Silver medallists (1985, 2007, 2013, 2014).

Rank in previous WC editions: 1973 – 11th, 1975 – 4th, 1978 – 10th, 1982 – 10th, 1998 – 11th, 2002 – 8th, 2014 – 12th, 2018 – 15th.

Malaysia will compete in their third successive FIH Men’s World Cup competition thanks to a fine second place finish at the 2022 Men’s Hockey Asia Cup. The Speedy Tigers were in outstanding form at the event in Jakarta, Indonesia, reaching the competition final without losing any of their six matches to secure their World Cup ticket before eventually going down 2-1 to Korea in the gold medal game.

The team featured in two competitions in the latter part of 2022, winning the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup on home soil with a 3-2 victory over Korea before losing 4-0 to the same opponent in the bronze medal match at the inaugural FIH Hockey Men's Nations Cup South Africa 2022.

Known for their distinctive brand of high-paced attacking hockey, Malaysia – coached by Arul Anthoni, who represented the country as a player at the 1998 FIH Men’s World Cup in Utrecht, Netherlands – are certainly capable of hurting any team that they play against. Razie Rahim is a potent weapon from penalty corner situations, while Faiz Jali, Firhan Ashari and Azuan Hasan bring a wealth of international experience to the table.

One to watch: Razie Rahim At the age of 35 and with over 300 international appearances under his belt, key Razie is a defensive stalwart whose quality and experience plays a vital role in making the team tick. He is also a world class penalty corner drag-flicker, as he proved at the 2022 Men’s Hockey Asia Cup, where he finished top scorer with 13 goals.