The Bahraini brothers explain how sibling support is helping them reach each of their dreams
Published 07:11, 13 Jul 2023
Siblings Husain and Abbas Ehsan share a common goal – to make it to Bahrain’s senior national team.
Being in the same team and playing the same role in the squad seems natural to draw a comparison between them. However, the Ehsan brothers proved that there is no sibling rivalry between them as they know how to play together and how to support each other when the other one is on the court.
“We currently play together at the club level, and in the past with the U20 national team. We’ve been playing together for four or five years now. We know each other and we know how to play together. Abbas, being my brother, we are in the same house together, so we know each other very well.” Husain said.
“I take experience from him in a lot of ways. He teaches me not only in volleyball but also in life.” Abbas added.
Husain Ehsan
Husain leads as captain of Bahrain at the 2023 FIVB Volleyball Men's U21 World Championship and shares the court with his brother Abbas, who is the youngest player in the tournament. Both of them play for Muharraq Club, a top four team in the national league.
Their uncle, Fadhel Abbas, is a renowned senior men’s national team player, who currently plays for Al Najma Club, also a top four team and league finalists this past season.
“We have a volleyball-loving family. Five of our cousins play volleyball, and we also have family members who play handball – all with local clubs and some with the national teams,” the elder Ehsan mentioned.
“We learned many things from our uncle Fadhel. I also got the chance to play with him in our club last year, so he taught me a lot of things.”
“I’ve also learned a lot from my uncle over the years and even my brother,” the younger sibling concurred.
Abbas Ehsan
There is a lot of fun bantering between the two, but there is much more encouragement and support that they show and give to each other.
“At the moment, I am a better player than Abbas (laughs) because I am bigger, and I have more experience than him. But Abbas has a lot of potential to be a great player. He has a good physique, and he can jump high. I think he can be stronger than me,” Husain said.
“We both want to be players on Bahrain’s senior national team – not just to be any player but among the team’s top players. We also aspire to play outside of Bahrain as professionals one day.”
“I hope we can continue to grow individually and help Bahrain be a strong national team,” Abbas said.
These Bahraini brothers are young and have many years ahead of them and more importantly, they have each other to realise their dreams.
