Manama, Bahrain, August 2, 2024 – Iran and China completed the semi-final line-up in the 15th Asian Men’s U18 Volleyball Championship at the Isa Sport City Hall C here on Friday night.
Both sides were victorious in their Pool E games in the Top Eight round, setting up exciting clashes in the Final Four, which are to be held on Saturday.
The Iranians, silver medallists from the competition’s 2022 edition, ousted hosts Bahrainis on Friday and will next face off with Group F winners Japan at 7pm local time on Saturday evening. China powered past Thailand and will now take on Pakistan in another thrilling fixture in the last four at 4.30pm.
Iran outclassed the Bahrainis 3-0 (25-12, 25-20, 25-14) to go to seven points and finish as runners-up in their group.
The Iranians showed their quality and were immediately in command with a one-sided opening set. Bahrain put in some resistance in the second and showed their pride as the home team, but the Iranians had all the answers and were not to be denied.
Parham Fadaei and Mobin Kolasangiani had 12 points apiece for the Iranians, while Jassim Madan had 15 points as Bahrain’s only player in double figures.
China, meanwhile, posted a dominant 3-0 (25-10, 25-13, 25-20) win against Thailand. The Chinese were in a class of their own and gave no chance for their opponents to get into their groove.
Li Xuyang spearheaded their team with 14 points, while Ding Haocheng chipped in 13. Kongkraphan Nimlamun had nine points for the Thais, while Sorasak Phunsanong finished with six.
China improved to eight points in first place on the final Pool E standings while maintaining their undefeated record. Thailand ended the Top Eight with two points, which they carried over from the preliminary round in a five-set victory against Bahrain.
The Bahrainis and Thais will play in the 5th-8th classification bracket on Saturday and Sunday.
In Pool F on Friday, Japan also stayed unbeaten with a 3-1 (22-25, 28-26, 25-18, 25-15) win over Pakistan in their Top Eight affair. Both sides had already secured their Final Four spots and battled to decide the group winners.
Japan rallied following a first-set setback behind the impressive play of their formidable quartet of Karen Masajedi, Rei Iwata, Sawa Maeda, and Yuki Kashiwazaki. Masajedi was exceptional in the close-out set, scoring eight of his team-high 18 points in that frame alone.
The defending and three-time champions came away with the full three points and ended this phase with…
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