Asian Men’s U16 Volleyball Championship:
Iran beaten by Pakistan in five-set final
Iran relinquished a two-set lead to suffer a 3-2 (22-25, 21-25, 30-28, 25-21, 15-11) loss to Pakistan in final showpiece of the Asian Men’s U16 Volleyball Championship in Nakhon Pathom, Thailand.
Muhammad Junaid chipped in a game-high 28 points for Pakistan, with Faizan Ullah finishing on 22.
Azhvan Namazi, meanwhile, contributed 22 points for Iran, while three teammates – Amirreza Faramarzi (13), Yasin Asadizadeh (13), and Radan Salehi (11) – also finished in double figures.
This was Iran’s second defeat against Pakistan in the tournament, following a 3-1 setback in the second group phase.
There was, however, some consolation for the Iranian players in the awarding ceremony as outside-hitter Namazi, middle-blocker Maziyar Fallah, and setter Aidin Pouzesh picked up individual awards and were name in the team of the tournament.
While questioning the real age of some Pakistani players, Iran head coach Arash Sadeqiani was still full of praise for his boys, who “had been away from their families for 50 days, and only arrived in Thailand 15 hours before their opening game.”
“There were other challenges like jet lag and tough weather conditions, but the team deserves credit for pushing through all of them,” added Sadeqiani, who vowed a much-improved performance by his team at next year’s FIVB U17 World Championship in Doha, Qatar.
Iran and Pakistan will be joined by the other two semifinalists India and Japan in representing the continent in the world showpiece.