IRAN DOMINANT TO BEGIN TREBLE QUEST AS JAPAN AND QATAR SWEEP POOLS IN URMIA

Urmia, Iran, August 20, 2023 – Reigning and consecutive two-time champions and hosts Iran made a dominant debut in the 22nd Asian Senior Men’s Volleyball Championship on Sunday, while Japan and Qatar completed clean sweeps of their preliminary round pools on the action-packed second day here.

The action and intensity continued to heat up at the two playing courts of Al Ghadir Hall, and the large crowds attending the games here were treated to plenty of exciting volleyball, showcasing the continent’s premier talent.

The home team certainly did not disappoint them. The Iranians opened their quest for a historic treble with a resounding three-set hammering of Hong Kong, China, much to the delight of their legions of fans packing the local arena.

But Iran was not the only team putting on a fantastic performance on Sunday, as other top contenders including Japan and Qatar maintained their winning ways for their second straight games to secure their berths in the Final 12 as pool winners. Both teams made easy work of their opponents, with the Japanese ousting Uzbekistan and the Qataris routing Afghanistan, each in three sets.

Also triumphant on Sunday’s six-game program was Indonesia, which beat Kazakhstan to bounce back from a day one loss against China, while Chinese Taipei and Pakistan made impressive starts to the competition with hard-earned victories against Bahrain and Bangladesh respectively.

Aside from Japan and Qatar, Iran, Chinese Taipei, and Pakistan also secured their places in the tournament’s Final 12 with their victories. Bahrain is also through despite its loss.

Five more games are scheduled for Monday to mark the end of this preliminary phase. The first fixtures get underway at 1.15 pm, local time, while the last game is scheduled for a 7.15 pm start.

Iran were in a class of their own in their Pool A victory against Hong Kong, China. Boosted by their loyal fan base, the Iranians flexed their muscles and lived up to their tag as title favorites in their convincing 3-0 (25-14, 25-15, 25-16) triumph against the East Asians.

Opposite spikers Amin Esmaeilnezhad and Saber Kazemi spearheaded their balanced scoring with eight points apiece, while skipper Seyed Mohammad Mousavi Eraghi, Mohammad Valizadeh, and Mobin Nasri Mastanabad all finished with seven points for the world No.10 national team.

Outside hitter, Ngai Yiu Cheung and opposite Chun Ho Damian Tam were the top scorers for Hong Kong, China with six and five points respectively.

The Iranians are back in action Monday evening when they face Iraq to determine Pool A’s top placers.

In Pool B, Japan was just as impressive as they disposed of Uzbekistan in a convincing 3-0 (25-8, 25-19, 25-13) win. Fielding mostly their bench players, the silver medallists from the previous edition in 2021 were technically and tactically superior to their rivals.

Opposite spiker Kento Miyaura top scored for the Japanese, ranked world No.5, with 15 points, while outside hitter Masato Kai added 12. Outside hitter Bunyodbek Khosinov had seven points to pace the Uzbeks.

With the result, Japan assured their place atop the Pool B standings and their berth in the Final 12 where they will face a yet-to-be-determined, second-ranked opponents from another group to be determined through the drawing of lots.

“We had a better game than the last one,” said Japan’s star skipper Yuki Ishikawa. “The fans in the hall are amazing and they cheered us every time we scored.”

Japan’s head coach French Philippe Blain added: “Our strength in this game was our jump serves. We had also used our young players to gain experience.”

Uzbekistan will face off against Thailand on Monday to determine the second team from Pool B to join the Japanese in the next stage.

Uzbek head coach Rakhimkulov Karimjon commented: “We did not play well against Japan. On the contrary, they played coherently. Today, my players did not have a good day, but we will try to get a good result against Thailand.”

Qatar cemented their hold of first place on the Pool E table with their second successive rout: a 3-0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-19) decision against Afghanistan.

Middle blocker Papemaguette Diagne had 11 points, with four on blocks, while outside hitter Ribeiro Renan added nine markers. Middle blocker Belal Nabel Abunabot and outside hitter Nikola Vasic each contributed eight points.

Skipper Mohammad Sabawoon Wardak was the top performer for the Afghans with 10 points and outside hitter Ghulam Rasool Hidari had nine in the loss.

Qatar’s head coach Argentine Camilo Andres Soto said: “We are happy for the participation of the Afghan team in this tournament and we have a lot of respect for them. All matches are important to us. Two days of break is a good opportunity for us to prepare for the next round.”

While the Qataris confidently march on to the Final 12, Afghanistan will face off against India Monday to determine the other team to make it into the ensuing phase.

“Our team needs more practice due to our late arrival to Urmia. We practiced only one hour; however, I am satisfied with my players,” said Afghanistan’s Mohammad Saber Noori.

In Pool C, Indonesia put the disappointment of a narrow five-set loss to China behind them and took care of Kazakhstan in four sets. They needed to rally back from a set down, however, en route to securing the 3-1 (24-26, 25-19, 25-12, 25-21) result.

Opposite Agil Angga Anggara was the top scorer for Indonesia with 20 points, while outside hitters Haryono Doni and Farhan Halim finished with 16 and 15 markers respectively. Outside hitter Vitaliy Vorivodin scored 14 to pace the Kazakhs, which also got 13 from Ilya Tavolzhanskiy.

Indonesia head coach Chinese Jiang Jie commented: “Today, we showed our main game and managed to win. Our team did not start well because of our incompatibility with the conditions and the atmosphere of the venue. 

“We played for the first time against Kazakhstan while we did not get to know the atmosphere of the hall and that is why we lost the first set.”

Following Indonesia’s win, the teams advancing from their pool will now be decided on the final day of pool play Monday when China and Kazakhstan lock horns. A win for the Chinese would put them and Indonesia through, but a victory for the Kazakhs will complicate matters.

Boris Grebennikov, head coach of Kazakhstan, said: “We had problems with receptions, and the opponents won by using our errors. We had a tough match against Indonesia and many mistakes were the reason for our loss in this match. We have a chance to beat China, so we have to make changes in the team.”

In Pool D, Chinese Taipei came from two sets down to thwart Bahrain 3-2 (23-25, 22-25, 25-21, 25-22, 15-11) in a five-set battle.

The two teams were evenly matched for most of the contest and the final set could have gone either way, but Chinese Taipei, fourth in the previous edition, showed their end-game poise to come away with the all-important result.

Opposite Chang Yu-Sheng top scored for the victors with 21 points, while outside hitter Wu Tsung-Hsuan had 18. Three others, Lin Yi-Huei, Chen Chien Chen, and Tsai Pei-Chang scored 13. Lin had five blocks in the game while Tsai finished with six. Opposite spiker Ali Ebrahim paced the Bahrainis with 16 points, while outside hitter Mohammed Yaqoob added 13.

Despite the outcome, both teams are through to the Final 12, with Chinese Taipei advancing as Pool D winners and Bahrain as runners-up. Their group also originally included Mongolia, but they withdrew from the competition just days before the start.

Pakistan also made a strong first impression Sunday, winning their Pool F contest against Bangladesh 3-0 (25-16, 25-14, 25-22). Opposite spiker Murad Khan scored 17 points, four on blocks, to pace the Pakistanis, while outside hitter Usman Faryad Ali added 12 in their win. Middle blocker Ratul Haider had eight points for Bangladesh.

The Pakistanis return to the court Monday to take on Korea for group supremacy. The Koreans had earlier won their first game against Bangladesh, which is now out of the running for the Final 12.

“Every match is like a final for us and we try to perform better in every game,” said Pakistan head coach Issanaye Ramires Ferraz from Brazil. “Pakistani players are excellent in quick serves and receptions. I hope we will be among the top teams in this championship.”

Bangladesh’s Ali Pour Aroji commented: “It is the first year that the Bangladesh team is participating in such a level of competition. We were able to gain points and we have to control the game to reach our desired result, which we failed.”