Manama, Bahrain, June 22, 2025 – Indonesia staged a sensational comeback to stun Vietnam in a thrilling five-set encounter in the 5th–8th Classification Round of the inaugural AVC Men’s Nations Cup at Isa bin Rashid Hall on Sunday, setting up a showdown with Australia for 5th place.
Defending and consecutive three-time SEA Games champions Indonesia battled back from two sets down to pull off an epic 3-2 (23-25, 24-26, 25-17, 25-23, 15-12) victory over their Southeast Asian counterparts. In the other 5th–8th classification match, Australia overcame Chinese Taipei 3-1 (25-22, 20-25, 25-12, 25-19) to advance to the 5th–6th playoff.
The highlight of the day was undoubtedly Indonesia’s gritty comeback win over Vietnam. Star opposite Rivan Nurmulki shone for Indonesia, delivering a brilliant 28-point performance, making him a persistent offensive threat throughout the match. Supported by outside hitter Farhan Halim (17 points) and middle blocker Hendra Kurniawan (10 points), Indonesia’s offense proved too powerful for Vietnam to contain.
Vietnam were spearheaded by the prolific Nguyen Ngoc Thuan, who fired a match-high 30 points from 27 attacks and 3 aces. Nguyen Van Quoc Duy and Pham Quoc Du chipped in with 21 and 10 points, respectively. Despite their efforts, Vietnam fell short in the decider.
Statistically, Indonesia outperformed Vietnam in attacks (74 to 68), blocks (11 to 7), and opponent errors (23 to 20). Vietnam had the edge in serving with 8 aces to Indonesia’s 4.
The victory earned Indonesia an additional 4.25 world ranking points, bringing their total to 54.10 and lifting them five spots to world No.57. Vietnam, despite the loss, retained their position at No.56 with 57.55 points. Indonesia will now take on Australia in the 5th–6th playoff on Monday, while Vietnam will meet Chinese Taipei for the 7th–8th classification.
Australia booked their place in the 5th–6th playoff after an impressive display against Chinese Taipei. After splitting the first two sets, Australia regained control with dominant performances in the third and fourth, propelled by their powerful counter-attacks and solid blocking.
William D’Arcy-Miles led the scoring for Australia with 18 points (16 attacks, 2 blocks), while Lorenzo Pope, Thomas Heptinstall, and Trent O’Dea added 15, 14, and 11 points, respectively. For Chinese Taipei, Chang Yu-Sheng stood out with a match-high 24 points, including 21 attacks and 3 aces.
Australia’s superiority at the net (18 blocks to 9) and in attack (53 to 45) proved decisive. They also capitalized on Chinese Taipei’s errors (23 to 18), although the Taiwanese were more effective from the service line (6 to 1).
With the win, Australia collected 4.3 points for a total of 108.91, moving up to world No.36. Chinese Taipei, meanwhile, slipped to No.52 with 68.49 points.
Earlier in the day, Thailand look set to secure a 9th-place finish after sweeping New Zealand 3-0 (25-20, 25-17, 27-25) in the 9th–11th Classification Round. Thailand had already beaten the Philippines 3-0 in their opening playoff match, ensuring a clean sweep with six points from two wins.
Left-handed spiker Amornthep Konhan led Thailand with 19 points, including 2 aces and 15 attack points. Supporting contributions came from Anurak Phanram (9 points), Chaiwat Thungkham (7), and middle blocker Kissada Nilsawai (5).
For New Zealand, outside hitter Mana Placid stood out with 20 points (19 attacks, 1 block), but his efforts were not enough to avert defeat.
Thailand earned 7.63 ranking points to reach a total of 52.84, rising five places to world No.59, while New Zealand dropped to No.66 with 40.64 points.
A total of 11 national teams are competing in the inaugural AVC Men’s Nations Cup, which serves as a qualification pathway for the 2026 Asian Men’s Volleyball Championship, a gateway to volleyball’s two biggest global stages: the 2027 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship and the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
MATCH SCHEDULE
Monday, June 23, 2025 (all local time)
11.30: Final 7-8: Chinese Taipei vs Vietnam
14.00: Final 5-6: Australia vs Indonesia
16.30: Semifinasl: Pakistan vs Qatar
19.00: Semifinals: Korea vs Bahrain
Watch live matches through Volleyball World YouTube
Click the link below for match schedule, results and photos
https://asianvolleyball.net/new/2025-avc-mens-volleyball-nations-cup/
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