FIH Hockey Junior World Cup: Sabit the outlier in Bangladesh's preliminary squad

With domestic competitions irregular and district leagues long dormant, Bangladesh's national hockey teams at various levels have increasingly come to rely on current and former students of Bangladesh Krira Shikkha Protishtan (BKSP). In that landscape, Nazmus Sabit Mahmud stands out.

A centre forward, Sabit is the only non-BKSP player included in the preliminary U-21 national squad for the upcoming FIH Junior World Cup. A product of the Ostad Fazlul Haque Hockey Academy in Old Dhaka, Sabit captained Armanitola High School in the inter-school tournament and emerged as both top scorer and best player in the 2023 Second Division Hockey League.

Now a 12th-grade student at Kabi Nazrul Islam College, Sabit is chasing a place in the final squad. Aware that every other player comes from BKSP, he sees the challenge clearly but says he's "mentally prepared for the fight."

"I know I am the only player who has been called up beyond the BKSP and I know it is going to be very competitive for me," Sabit told reporters before starting training on the second day at Maulana Bhasani Hockey Stadium yesterday.

Sabit also has hockey in his blood. His father, Hazi Mohammad Selim Mahmud, played for Mauthtuli Club, and he shares a family connection with national forward Rasel Mahmud Jimmy. The relationship goes beyond inspiration: Jimmy often gives him technical advice, especially for penalty corners.

Mehrab Hossain Samin, who captained the team at the AHF Junior Asia Cup, is equally eager to begin World Cup preparations.

"We're really excited to start preparing for the FIH Junior World Cup. We grew up watching our cricket team play on that stage, so it feels like a huge achievement for hockey to finally reach the World Cup too.

"We are practising wearing the jersey which has a photo of the World Cup trophy. This photo is fake but it has been a big thing for us," said Samin, adding that starting camp four months in advance will help build team chemistry, but match exposure remains crucial.

To strengthen their campaign, the Bangladesh Hockey Federation (BHF) plans to arrange at least eight practice matches abroad. General secretary Lt Col (rtd) Rizaul Hasan informed discussions are underway to tour Pakistan for four matches, followed by another four in a European country, but "nothing's finalised yet".

The BHF general secretary further informed Dutch coach Seigfried Aikman is expected to arrive in the first week of August to sign a memorandum of understanding before taking charge of the U-21 side in early September.