By Marie Louise Principe
Chiba, Japan, September 17, 2021 – Hosts Japan, China, Iran and Chinese Taipei confirmed their semifinals slots after posting victories in their respective matches in the quarterfinal stage of the 21st Asian Senior Men’s Volleyball Championship on Friday.
Pool E in Chiba Port Arena
In the main event in Chiba Port Arena, Hosts Japan entered the semifinals as they took a 3-0 win (25-23, 25-17, 25-23) against Australia.
Captain Yuki Ishikawa led the home team with 14 points, but placed more credit to his teammates in Friday evening’s match.
“I’m relieved that we qualified for the semifinal. We managed this with good performance of our libero Yamamoto, setter Oya and opposite Ohtake,” said Ishikawa.
China claimed their semis slot after a thrilling tie-break win, 3-2 (28-26, 21-25, 26-28, 25-19, 15-10) over Qatar.
Zhang JIngyin and captain Jiang Chuan proved to be China’s chief scorers, posting 26 points and 23 points respectively.
Pool F in Chiba Port Arena
Title holders Iran punched their semis ticket through a 3-0 win (25-10, 25-23, 25-11) against Chinese Taipei.
Iran’s reliable hitters Saber Kazemi (15 points) and Amir Hossein Esfandiar (11 points) posted the top performance for the team, but coach Ataei Nouri Behrouz also played his substitutes in the final set. Meanwhile, Chinese Taipei mostly utilized their second unit throughout Friday’s match in the main competition hall.
Earlier, opposite Murad Khan made a massive 28 points (20 attacks, 7 blocks, 1 service ace), to power Pakistan’s 3-0 victory (25-23, 25-22, 25-14) against Korea
Pool G in Funabashi Arena
India ignited a straight-set win, 3-0 (25-19, 25-13, 25-22) on Uzbekistan, during Friday’s opening match at the Funabashi Arena.
India dominated in attack, posting a total of 52 points from their hitters, as they limited their errors ( 7 errors) throughout their match on Friday.
Later, Bahrain bested Kuwait, 3-0 (25-21, 25-19, 25-19) as they dominated on all scoring fronts, charting 42 attacks, 9 stuff blocks, and 3 service winners.
Pool H in Funabashi Arena
Kazakhstan claimed a 3-0 win (25-16m 25-21, 25-16) against Hong Kong, China.
The Kazakh side performed well from the service line, managing to post a total 6 aces, but likewise capitalized on their taller line-up, as they gained the edge in attacks (46 points) and blocks (8 points).
In a later match, Saudi Arabia staged a 3-1 win (25-20, 20-25, 25-19, 25-22) over Thailand.
Assad Azouz charted a total of 25 points, while allowing Saudi Arabia’s blockers to dominate the field with a total of 15 points gathered from deflections.
Teams will play the semifinal round on Saturday, with the top eight teams staying on in Chiba Port Arena. The semifinal Matches at the Funabashi Arena will place the 9th – 16th teams along their classification pathway.
The Finals on Sunday will determine the champion and vice-champion teams, which will directly qualify for the 2022 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship in Russia.
Related links of AVC
AVC Website: click www.asianvolleyball.net
AVC Facebook: click www.Facebook.com/AsianVolleyballConfederation
AVC Twitter: click: www.twitter.com/AsianVolleyball
AVC Instagram: click: https://www.instagram.com/avcvolley/?hl=en
AVC Youtube: click: Asian Volleyball Confederation
AVC WeChat: Asian Volleyball Confederation