Asian Volleyball Championship: Pakistan confident of improving

Side finished 10th last time but eye better campaign as tournament begins today

KARACHI: The Pakistan volleyball team gears up for the Asian Volleyball Championship, being held in Surabaya, Indonesia, from July 24 to August 1.

Pakistan warmed up for the tournament with some friendly games against Oman, Qatar and Japan and the president of the Pakistan Volleyball Federation (PVF) Mohammad Yaqoob talked up the team’s chances. “The players are in good shape and the matches against Japan helped the team gear up for the main event,” he said, while talking to The Express Tribune.

Pakistan, who finished 10th spot in the last edition, have been placed in Group B alongside runners-up Iran, fifth-placed Chinese Taipei and Iraq. Meanwhile, Indonesia, Qatar, Kazakhstan and Saudi Arabia are in Group A.

Defending champions Japan, Korea, Vietnam and Sri Lanka are in Group C while Australia, China, Thailand and Hong Kong have been bracketed in Group D.

In the group matches, Pakistan will take on Chinese Taipei on July 24, followed by a match against Iran on July 25 before they take on Iraq on July 26.

“The team has been training under Iranian coach Hamid Movahedi, who has helped improve the team a lot — especially in terms of technique,” added Yaqoob. “His presence during the tournament will go a long way in helping the team win matches. We are confident that we will finish higher than the 10^th placed finish we had in the last edition.”

“Team is in good shape, we have chance to reach the next stage of the competition,” told head coach Hamid Movahedi. “The boys have been working really hard for past months and do have knowledge of latest techniques.”

He said that the difference between the old team and current team is their skills. “The players have learned latest skills and know how to counter the opponent team,” he said.

“We have tough teams in our pool but the starting two matches will tell us how this competition will be for us,” he said. “We have been working on many drills and techniques which have made them stronger as a team.”

He added that he is hoping to see the players go out there and give their best. “We will be taking one match at a time won't think about all matches at same time. Our focus will be on the next match we have to play,” he said.