Iran routs Turkmenistan in Asian Junior Volleyball Championship
The Iranian men’s national junior volleyball team has thrashed Turkmenistan at the preliminary round of the 18th edition of the Asian Men's U20 Volleyball Championship in Chinese Taipei.
On Saturday, the Iranian squad beat Turkmenistan 3-0 in its Pool B opening match held at the indoor Kaohsiung Arena in the southwestern Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung.
The Iranian team had captain Rasoul Aghcheli, Javad Karimi, Esmaeil Talebi, Amir Hossein Esfandiyar, Esmaeil Mosafer, Tayyeb Eini and Ali Asghar Mojarrad in its initial lineup of the fixture, and was led by head coach Behrouz Ataei.
“Every opener of a tournament is difficult. Even though Turkmenistan was not a strong team, we tried to field all players to give them the chance to test their skills. We were dominant on the court throughout the first set,” Ataei said after the match.
He added, “Even though the rhythm of the game changed in the second set and the opposite side narrowed the gap, we did not capitulate and could eventually claim the set, and seal a win at last.”
Aghcheli also commented, “It was a good match. We played well in the first set, but our individual mistakes in the second and third sets offered the opposite team the chance to slash the deficit.”
“I am glad that we could emerge triumphant in the first match. Iranian volleyball players have yet to get fairly fit for the ongoing tournament, and I hope that we will feature a better performance in our second showdown.”
The 18th edition of the Asian Men's U20 Volleyball Championship kicked off in Kaohsiung on July 9 and will wrap up on July 17.
Iran, the team of the defending champions, has been pitted against Qatar, Turkmenistan and Hong Kong in Pool B of the tournament.
Host Chinese Taipei, Thailand, Kazakhstan and Myanmar are drawn in Pool A.
Pool C comprises China, Japan, Pakistan and a team from Iraq, while South Korea, Bahrain, Sri Lanka and Australia are in Pool D.
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