DAY 1 WRAP-UP
Manama, Bahrain, May 15, 2023 – Mighty Suntory Sunbirds from Japan, Iran’s powerhouses Shahdab Yazd and Korean Air Jumbos Pro-Volleyball Club all got off to victorious starts on the opening day of the 2023 Asian Men’s Club Volleyball Championship on Sunday.
The continental giants are billed as the favourites to battle for the coveted title in the prestigious 16-nation championship, and they all lived up to expectations, winning their respective assignments in straight sets at Isa Sports City in the Kingdom of Bahrain.
Home side Al-Ahli followed suit but needed grueling five sets to topple Jakarta Bhayangkara Presisi from Indonesia.
The other winners on Day 1 were Gulf sides Kuwait Sporting Club of Kuwait and Police Sports Team from Qatar, as well as Taichung Bank from Chinese Taipei and Khaypil Sports Club from Yemen.
Attending the Sunday’s games were Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) Vice President His Highness Shaikh Isa bin Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Bahrain Volleyball Association (BVA) President Shaikh Ali bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, BOC Secretary General Faris Al Kooheji, and other BVA’s high-ranking officials.
Suntory Sunbirds, runners-up at the last year’s edition, outclassed Diamond Food Fine Chef-Air Force from Thailand 3-0 (25-17, 26-24, 25-19) in their Pool C encounter.
Former Olympic gold-medallist and multi-titled international volleyball star Dmitry Muserskiy from Russia towered over his opponents to finish with 20 points, while teammates Cuban Alain Junior de Armas added 18 markers and Kenya Fujinaka 11 for the Sunbirds. Brazilian Evandro Dias De Souza was the top scorer for the Thais with 11.
“Today’s match was a great start for us,” said de Armas in post-game interview. “We had some problems in serving, blocking and in transition, but in the days that will come we will do our best in this tournament.
“The team want to go for the win. The main reason we are here is to win. We will do our best to go for first place.”
Shahdab Yazd cruised against South Gas Sports Club of Iraq 3-0 (25-22, 25-14, 25-18) in Pool B.
Amir Ghafour finished with 15 points to lead the Iranians as they look to follow in the footsteps of their countrymen from Paykan Tehran, champions at the last year’s edition.
Korean Air Jumbos Pro-Volleyball Club were just as dominant in their game over Canberra Heat from Australia, posting an impressive 3-0 (25-11, 25-21, 25-12) result for a flying start in Pool A.
Donghyeok Im led…
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