Urmia, Iran، August 27, 2023 – Sensational Japan were Saturday night crowned undisputed volleyball champions of Asia.
The world number five Japanese put in a near-flawless performance in a stunning 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-18) shutout of hosts Iran to capture the coveted title in the 22nd Asian Senior Men’s Volleyball Championship, held in the vibrant Iranian city of Urmia.
The trio of opposite spiker Yuji Nishida, skipper Yuki Ishikawa and outside hitter Ran Takahashi spearheaded the victors in the gold medal contest, which marked the end of a week-long celebration of the very best in the continental game.
Japan secured the Asian senior men’s championship for a record 10th time in the competition’s history, and avenged their loss in the final of the tournament’s previous edition in 2021, when the Iranians secured a second consecutive title.
Joining Japan and Iran on the podium were bronze-medallists Qatar. The top three were given their respective accolades in the official awards presentation and closing ceremony that followed Saturday night’s final.
A number of individual honours were also handed out, with Ishikawa and Takahashi among three Japanese players to headline the awardees. They included:
Most Valuable Player – Yuki Ishikawa (Japan)
Best Outside Hitter #1 – Ran Takahashi (Japan)
Best Outside Hitter #2 – Raimi Wadidie (Qatar)
Best Middle Blocker #1 – Belal Nabel Abunabot (Qatar)
Best Middle Blocker #2 – Taishi Onodera (Japan)
Best Libero – Yang Yiming (China)
Best Setter – Mohammad Taher Vadi (Iran)
Best Opposite – Amin Esmaeilnezhad (Iran)
Japan’s straight-sets triumph over Iran was representative of their near-perfect campaign in Urmia. In their five matches played, the volleyball “Samurai” sliced through the opposition, conceding just a single set all throughout, which was in the semi-finals against the Qataris.
The two finalists matched each other point for point early on in the title-clincher, but the Japanese were able to pull away to end the first set, with middle blocker Akihiro Yamauchi making some key contributions.
The second set also started off being closely contested, but Japan rallied for three unanswered points to break an 8-all deadlock, and they never looked back. Ishikawa and Nishida got into their groove and powered their team to the commanding two-set advantage. They didn’t let up in the third set, with Takahashi joining them in their relentless attack.
Down 15-23 but boosted by their loyal supporters who packed Urmia’s Al Ghadir Hall, the Iranians made one last stand and scored the next three points to close the gap. But they couldn’t get any closer as Nishida replied with a fantastic kill and Japan closed the match out with the championship point.
Nishida finished as Japan’s top scorer with 15 points, 13 of which were in attack, while contributing 14 points, including three blocks, was Ishikawa, who just last month was named onto the 2023 Volleyball Nations League’s Dream Team. Takahashi added 10 points, while Onodera chipped in with six and Yamauchi had four.
Leading Iran, who committed a number of uncharacteristic errors in the final, was Milad Ebadipour Ghara, who finished with eight points, while fellow-outside hitter Meisam Salehi scored seven. Three others contributed five points apiece in the loss, including middle blockers Seyed Mohammad Mousavi Eraghi and Mohammad Fallah Zarchoub, and opposite Saber Kazemi.
In Saturday’s game for third place, Qatar captured their first-ever medal in the competition following a resounding 3-0 (25-23, 25-19, 25-18) sweep of China.
Outside hitter Youssef Oughlaf had 14 points to pace the bronze-medallists. Abunabot added 11, while outside hitters Ribeiro Renan and Wadidie scored nine points apiece.
For China, outside hitters Wang Bin and Deng Xinpeng were their leading scorers, finishing with 17 and 13 points, respectively.
Also on the last day of the tournament on Saturday, Pakistan secured seventh place overall after defeating AVC Challenge Cup silver-medallists Bahrain 3-1 (25-22, 21-25, 25-18, 25-18) in their final ranking fixture.
Opposite spiker Murad Khan had 19 points, including 15 in attack, for the Pakistanis, who are coached by former Bahrain tactician Issanaye Ramires Ferraz from Brazil. Outside hitters Usman Faryad Ali and Murad Jehan contributed 17 points apiece in their win.
Bahrain’s outside hitter Mohammed Yaqoob was their top scorer in the loss with 15 points, while opposite spiker Mohammed Anan added 12.
Elsewhere Saturday, three-time defending Southeast Asian Games gold medal winners Indonesia claimed ninth on the final classification with a 3-0 (25-21, 25-23, 25-21) victory over AVC Challenge Cup winners Thailand.
Outside hitter Fahri Septian Putratama and opposite Agil Angga Anggara finished with 13 points apiece to pace the Indonesians, while opposite Napadet Bhinijdee and outside hitter Anurak Phanram each had 11 for the Thais.
FINAL RANKING
1 Japan
2 Iran
3 Qatar
4 China
5 Korea
6 Chinese Taipei
7 Pakistan
8 Bahrain
9 Indonesia
10 Thailand
11 India
12 Iraq
13 Kazakhstan
14 Afghanistan
15 Bangladesh
16 Hong Kong, China
17 Uzbekistan
18 Mongolia (withdrew)
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