Tehran, Iran, May 20, 2022 – Hosts Peykan stamped their domination over the 2022 Asian Men’s Club Volleyball Championship after an epic comeback 3-2 (21-25, 26-28, 25-13, 25-20, 15-12) win against Suntory Sunbirds in the thrilling final showdown at Azadi Hall on Friday in front of over 10,000 fans.
Nimir Abdelaziz weighed in with a huge 29 points including 24 attacks from 45 attempts and 3 aces for Peykan, while Earvin Ngapeth kept good company to contribute 14 points. Dmitriy Muserskiy scored a match-high 30 points for Suntory Sunbirds including 26 kills from 50 attempts.
Suntory Sunbirds, attempting to forget the 1-3 loss at the hands of the Iranians in the pool preliminary match, fielded a strong lineup, while hosts Peykan, the only unbeaten team in the tournament en route to the Friday’s showdown, were also strong with the superstars including Marouf, Mousavi, and Ngapeth.
In a high-octane game, both sides fought hard from the very beginning of the first set, with Dmitriy Muserskiy showcasing his exceptional attacking and powerful serving skills and Yanagida firing fast attacks to help Suntory Sunbirds move ahead with a four-point clear at 16-12. Suntory Sunbirds ran away with it through combination attacks and excellent teamwork for the thrilling 25-21 win.
In the second set, the Japanese came through spectacular blocking punctuated by imposing spikes. The Iranians had no answer to the well-organised combination attacks and superb netplay skills of the rivals. The on-going battle turned out to be hotly anticipated after the second technical timeout when teams were trading points one after another that finally the gallant attack of the Japanese gave chance to Suntory Sunbirds to wrap up the set 28-26 to make it 2-0.
Going down two sets, the Iranians made a strong comeback in the third set. Their resilience was showcased through spectacular blocking from Nimir Abdelaziz and Hamzeh Zarini followed by some powerful spikes moments later by Armin Tashakori and Seyed Mohammad Mousavi, who continued to dominate with the beleaguered Japanese unable to muster any sort of response in the final stretch. Hosts Peykan went through to win the set by a wide margin 25-13.
In the fourth set, Nimir Abdelaziz continued to marshall the defence, but the Japanese communication began to break down. Hard-attacking Dmitriy Muserskiy helped to improve on the team’s attacks, but the Iranians remained firm with their impenetrable defence. After taking a commanding lead with a four-point clear at 20-16, Peykan marched on their remarkable run to finally capture the set 25-20.
In the decider, Peykan gained the upper hand to take 8-7 lead. Nonetheless, Suntory Sunbirds did not want to surrender easily, hitting back gallantly to catch the tough opponents at some crucial moments but Tehran Peykan continued to seal the deal 15-12.
Peykan eventually captured the eventual title, smashing the Japanese sweet dreams of capturing their first Asian Men’s Club title.
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