Asian men’s volley semis: Qatar, Iran set finals rematch

MANILA, Philippines – Qatar and Iran will meet again for the finals of the 2014 PLDT Home Fibr Asian Men’s Club Volleyball Championships after sweeping their respective semifinal opponents on Tuesday, April 15 at the Mall of Asia Arena.

The reigning champions from Iran will stake their unbeaten record against also undefeated Al Rayyan of Qatar, the silver medalists in last year’s tournament who are looking to serve revenge.

Below are the roundup of games in the penultimate day of action in the tournament.

5TH-8TH PLACING

Power Pinoys show progress but are swept by Iraq

The home squad showcased more grit this time, even leading at times although eventually running out of fuel during decisive stages to counter the Ananiev Metodi Alexander-led Al Gas Janoob of Iraq.

The Philippines fell in straight sets, 25-17, 25-21, 25-21 after a paltry effort on floor defense, allowing 35 attack points for the West Asian country. Iraq did commit 26 errors, mostly coming from the service zone kept the Power Pinoys within striking distance.

But 19 points from Metodi and 11 from Hussein Mustafa Gani proved to be the difference in the match.

Chinese Taipei routs Lebanon

In a battle of two teams that pushed Iran to the limit, Taipei City of Chinese Taipei flashed more precision in their convincing 25-12, 25-23, 25-17 victory against Al Zahra of Lebanon.

Bruno Furtado mustered only 7 points as the Fertile Crescent region suffered from 28 errors, twice as much as Taipei’s miscues. Wang Ming-Chun’s 18 points on 15 spikes and 3 service aces paced the East Asian nation.

SEMIFINALS

Qatar shuts Kazakhstan

Al-Rayyan of Qatar assured themselves of the silver medal anew after edging Kondensat Zhaikmunaiy-Kazakhstan in a close battle, 25-22, 25-22, 25-19.

Qatar’s return trip to the finals were anchored on the exploits of Christian Savani, Al Hachdadi Mohamed, and Yosleyder Cala Gerardo, whose 43 points on 35 spikes and 7 blocks gave last year’s runner-up a huge lift.

The Qataris, whose volleyball program has reaped good results recently, started flat in the first two sets but found ways to breach through Kazakhstan’s defense. In the third set, they took control and blasted the East-Asian squad with thunderous spikes to punch the first finals ticket.

“It was a difficult game since it is a knockout system. There is pressure because we are the favorites. We were a bit nervous because of the importance of this game. But we had more experience,” said Qatar head coach Igor Arbotina. He doesn’t want the team to get ahead of themselves approaching the gold medal match tomorrow.

“Any competition is not the same so it is difficult to compare,” he added, saying teams have paraded different lineups and top-class foreign recruits.

Iran wins titanic battle vs China

As expected, giants from Matin Varamin Iran and Beijing BAIC Motors China went toe to toe in a Herculian battle for the last finals berth, with the defending champions nipping their counterparts, 27-25, 25-23, 25-20.

China threatened to steal the first set battling back from a 15-18 deficit to take set point at 24-23. However, Seyed Mousavi took over with rattling quick spikes.

The second set was as close as it could get as well, although Iran got the early lead as China was hounded by errors. But with hard-hitting Frederic Winters who scored three straight points, BAIC Motors pulled within 20-21.

However, Mostafa Sharifat and Shahram Mahmoudi dodged their opponent’s comeback attempt with telling blows to protect the lead and extend it to two sets.

Only 3 points separated their attacks (42-39); the Chinese side scored more blocks (10-8), but committed more errors (21-17) which proceed to be costly in the end.

“We kicked our asses with stupid mental errors. Even if they are little, if they pile up then you would know why we lost,” Winters said after the match.

The final game date of the AMCVC takes place tomorrow, April 15 at the Mall of Asia Arena with games starting at 10 AM. – Rappler.com