Australia, China and Thailand win on day two in Fukuoka

The second competition day at the AVC Men's Volleyball Asian Championship was marked by three straight-set matches, which also serves as a qualification event for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games and for the 2027 FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Cup. Australia, China and Thailand started their campaigns in Fukuoka with straight-set victories over Bahrain, India and Qatar, respectively. The competition is streamed live and on demand on VBTV.

• Watch the AVC Men's Volleyball Asian Championship on VBTV

Outside hitter Lorenzo Pope powered Australia to a 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-21) shutout of Bahrain in a Pool A fixture. Pope excelled both from the serving line with four aces and in attack with 14 kills towards a 19-point match high. Middle blocker Nehemiah Mote stood out in net defense, putting up five of the team’s nine kill blocks. He also registered a 75% success rate in attack to finish on a total of 11 points. Opposite Lincoln Alexander Williams added another 10 points towards Australia’s success. Outside Mahmood Ahmed Abdulwahed was Bahrain’s most prolific scorer with 10 points to his name.

China and India put up a tough fight that lasted over an hour and a half despite finishing in three sets. Two of the sets were pushed to overtime as China achieved a 3-0 (25-21, 28-26, 27-25) victory in Pool B. Outside hitters Wang Bin of China and Chirag Yadav of India shared the top scorer honors with 16 points each. The other Chinese outside, Zhang Jingyin, chipped in with 12 points, including two kill blocks, while India’s opposite and captain Jerome Vinith Charles fired a couple of aces towards a 10-point total.

In the last match of the second competition day, Thailand produced a speedy 3-0 (25-22, 25-19, 25-14) win over Qatar in Pool C, despite 13-year-old Mubarak Musa Thiik Madut’s outstanding performance, which brought in a team-high 12 points. The 2.10m-tall opposite delivered five kill blocks, two serving aces and five successful swings. Thailand’s opposite Napadet Bhinijdee led the way to victory with a match-high 14 points, including one ace and one kill block. Outside hitter Chaiwat Thungkham came in a close second with 13 points, including one block, for the winners. His cross-court teammate Thanat Bamrungphakdi finished with a 10-point tally, featuring one ace. Qatari counterpart Yousef Alyafeai also signed off with 10 points.

The Asian Championship continues on Sunday, September 6, with Iran against India in Pool B at 10:00 local time (01:00 UTC), Qatar against Chinese Taipei in Pool C at 13:30 (04:30), and Japan against Bahrain in Pool A at 19:30 (10:30).

AVC Men's Volleyball Asian Championship: schedule and results

Quick links:
AVC Men's Volleyball Asian Championship
VBTV
Volleyball World Facebook
Volleyball World X
Volleyball World Instagram
Volleyball World YouTube
Subscribe to Volleyball World's Newsletter