Urmia, Iran, August 19, 2023 – Powerhouses Japan, Korea and Qatar made spectacular winning starts on the opening day of the 22nd Asian Senior Men’s Volleyball Championship on Saturday.
The topflight championship got underway in exciting fashion with a five-match programme at Al Ghadir Hall here.
With reigning and consecutive two-time champions and hosts Iran not taking to the court on opening night, the other top contenders took the opportunity to send out a message of intent to their rivals.
The Japanese, Qataris and Koreans all powered to resounding straight-set victories in their preliminary encounters, while also emerging triumphant were China and Iraq, both in five-set thrillers.
Action continues in the preliminaries on Sunday from 1.15 pm local time. Six games are scheduled for Day 2, with home-crowd favourites Iran beginning their title defence against Hong Kong, China in a Pool A contest scheduled for a 7.15 pm start at Al Ghadir’s Hall 1.
On Saturday, world No.5 Japan posted a scintillating 3-0 (25-19, 25-21, 25-22) rout of Thailand in their head-to-head Pool B.
The silver medallists from the previous edition of the 21st Asian Championship in 2021 were led by the tandem of opposite spiker Yuji Nishida and skipper Yuki Ishikawa, who combined for 27 points.
Nishida led the way with 14. Opposite Napadet Bhinijdee paced the Thais with 14 while captain Anut Promchan contributed 12 in the loss.
“It was a tough match against Thailand and I am happy that we marked the opener of the Asian Championship with a win,” said Ishikawa, who less than a month ago was named Best Outside Hitter on the 2023 Volleyball Nations League’s Dream Team.
“The atmosphere of the stadium was exciting and great, and the fans had good support for the Japanese national team,” he added.
Thailand’s head coach Korean Park Ki Won stated: “It has been four months since we started our work. In this match, we were able to challenge the Japanese at some points. Urmia spectators created a unique atmosphere in the hall today. In addition, I must thank the officials of the Asian Volleyball Confederation and the Iran Volleyball Federation as hosts of the competition.”
The Japanese are back in action Sunday when they complete their Pool B campaign against Uzbekistan. The Thais and Uzbeks then face off on Monday.
Korea also enjoyed a convincing victory Saturday, beating Bangladesh 3-0 (25-19, 25-22, 25-19) in Pool F.
Opposite spiker Heo Subong had 15 points as the…
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