Manama, Bahrain, August 3, 2024 – China and Iran will face off in the final of the 15th Asian Men’s U18 Volleyball Championship at Isa bin Rashid Arena here on Sunday.
China, which have yet to win the title but have finished runners-up twice, secured their place in the gold medal game with a thrilling 3-2 (25-23, 22-25, 25-22, 23-25, 15-8) victory against a battling Pakistan on Saturday night.
Iran followed suit, taking down defending and three-time champions Japan 3-0 (25-18, 25-23, 25-22) in the other semi-final affair.
The final is scheduled to take place at 7pm local time on Sunday at the Bahrain Volleyball Association’s Isa bin Rashid Arena in Riffa, located on the outskirts of the capital city of Manama.
A bronze medal contest between Pakistan and Japan will be held at 4.30pm.
The Chinese came up with huge plays throughout their match to eke out the hard-earned win. A timely block by Hu Hanlin gave them the opening set and the early match advantage, but then the Pakistanis struck back in the second and drew level with a Jabran service ace.
Li Xuyang was in sensational form for China in the third frame and following a net fault by Pakistan that gave their rivals set point, Li delivered to put his team ahead 2-1.
The Chinese then appeared to be on their way to the victory after carrying over their momentum into the fourth set. They took command early and went ahead 20-15. But the Pakistanis fought back and put in a fantastic 10-3 rally – capped by a crucial error on serve that gifted them a 24-23 advantage and a misfired attack by Yu Xiang that sent the contest into a tie-break.
There, China were able to regain their composure and were not to be denied. A double block gave them a 13-8 edge and they never looked back, securing their place in the title game for the first time since 2012.
Li finished with an impressive game-high of 30 points for the winners, including three straight sets in which he scored eight each. Yu added 21 while Ding Haocheng had 15. For Pakistan, Muhammad Yahya was their top man with 18 points, while Jabran Jabran chipped in 11.
Iran booked their berth and will now be looking to claim their eighth crown in the history of the competition, which would be their first since 2014. They lost in the last edition’s final in 2022 to the Japanese, and got their revenge this time around.
The Iranians were on the top of their game in Saturday’s clash and were able to stave off their rivals each time they mounted a rally. Spearheaded by the fine play of Noureyni Amir Naderi and Mohammad Amin Rahimi, Iran took the opening set convincingly and then did enough in the second to come away with a commanding 2-0 cushion. Making the most of their size advantage, they didn’t let up in the third set and closed out the match in emphatic fashion.
Naderi led all scorers with 16 points in Iran’s win while Amin added 15. Karen Masajedi, who is half-Iranian, had 15 points for Japan, while Rei Iwata chipped in with nine in defeat.
With their loss, Japan will now face Pakistan for the bronze medal in a game scheduled for 4.30pm on Sunday, prior to the championship decider.
Meanwhile, Korea will play Thailand for fifth place and crucial ranking points.
The Koreans defeated hosts Bahrainis 3-0 (25-15, 25-16, 25-21) in their classification contest, while the Thais beat Chinese Taipei 3-1 (26-24, 25-21, 17-25, 25-22).
Korea cruised in the game and were led by Lee Seungil’s nine points. Shin Pyeonggang added eight, while three players finished with seven in a balanced attack, including Lee Junho, Im Sehoon, and San Lee. Jassim Madan had 15 points to pace Bahrain.
Thailand banked on a team-wide effort to come away triumphant in a tightly contested clash. Five players finished in double figures in their win, led by 16 of Kongkraphan Nimlamun. Hu Jun-Xiang had 17 for Chinese Taipei, which will play for seventh place against Bahrain.
Kazakhstan and India will face off for ninth place. The Kazakhs swept past Australia 3-0 (25-18, 25-17, 25-16) Saturday while India defeated the Philippines 3-1 (25-21, 25-20, 17-25, 25-19).
Yegor Volkov had 17 to pace the Kazakhs, while Sionetupou Veamatahau had 16 points as Australia’s leading scorer. For India, Harish Vats had 16 points while Luke Anton Carl Macatangay and Lance Danielle Babon finished with 20 apiece for the Filipinos.
Hong Kong, China and Lebanon will play for 13th place. Hong Kong, China defeated Kuwait 3-1 (25-18, 25-27, 25-21, 25-14), while Lebanon claimed their first victory of the championship after defeating Saudi Arabia 3-1 (14-25, 26-24, 25-16, 25-19).
Hong Kong, China were led by Ko Ching Kin, who had an impressive 31 points. Naser Alsane was the top scorer for Kuwait with 15.
Serge Chehab had 21 points to pace the Lebanese, while Azzam Alsubaie finished with 16 points for the Saudi Arabians.
Kuwait and Saudi will clash for 15th place overall.
POOL RANKING AND RESULTS
POOL 1-4
POOL 5-8
POOL 9-12
POOL 13-16
MATCH SCHEDULE
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