VOLLEYBALL – BAHRAIN’S senior men’s volleyball national team made history last night as they were crowned champions of the AVC Men’s Volleyball Nations Cup 2025.
The hosts secured the prestigious title with a stunning 3-1 (23-25, 25-16, 25-17, 25-18) victory over Pakistan in a rocking final played at a packed Isa Bin Rashid Arena at Isa Sports City in Riffa.
With the result, the kingdom’s side secured their first-ever championship in any competition held under the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) banner. It was also their maiden title in this event, which has been rebranded for this year.
Also by bagging the gold medals, the Bahrainis secured a spot in the 2026 Asian Men’s Volleyball Championship.
Last night’s title-decider marked the two teams’ second appearance in the final of the tournament. Bahrain and Pakistan were previously silver-medallists in its previous two editions – the Bahrainis in 2023 and the Pakistanis in 2024.
Joining them on the podium were last year’s champions Qatar, who defeated South Korea 3-0 (25-21, 25-20, 25-23) in yesterday’s bronze medal fixture.
All three top-placers were awarded their respective accolades following their games.
This year’s eight-day AVC Men’s Volleyball Nations Cup was held under the patronage of Supreme Council for Youth and Sports first deputy chairman, General Sports Authority (GSA) chairman, and Bahrain Olympic Committee president Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa.
GSA deputy chairman Shaikh Salman bin Mohammed Al Khalifa was in attendance during the final and he presented Bahrain and Pakistan their respective awards. Also on hand were Bahrain Volleyball Association (BVA) president Shaikh Ali bin Mohammed Al Khalifa and other Bahrain and AVC officials.
BVA secretary general and the tournament’s executive committee chairman Feras Al Helwachi handed out the bronze medals to the Qataris.
A number of individual awards were also presented, with four of Bahrain’s top spikers taking home silverware. Mohammed Yaqoob was the star of stars, claiming Most Valuable Player and Best Outside Hitter honours.
Ali Ebrahim, who did not play in yesterday’s final due to injury, was named the Best Opposite, Ayman Harwana was selected as Best Libero, and Mahmood Alafyah won for being the Best Setter.
Pakistan skipper Murad Jehan was also a Best Outside Hitter, and teammate Musawer Khan along with Qatar’s Belal Nabel Abunabot were the Best Middle Blockers.
Bahrain were underdogs heading into last night’s final but received a major boost from the vibrant local crowd.
Head coach and former Olympian Arnaud Josserand from France praised the team for showing “big, big heart”.
“Our players were amazing tonight,” Josserand told the GDN amidst wild post-game celebrations. “They put everything they have in the game and in playing together, even the guys on the bench. This is really a super team!
“I am very proud of them and they showed that they all have big, big heart.”
Bahrain were in control early in the contest with a 15-10 advantage in the first set but Pakistan roared back and outside hitter Usman Faryad Ali supplied the clinching block.
Bahrain, however, came alive behind the leadership of Yaqoob and team captain Naser Anan and rallied to take control in the second. They also got a massive push from opposite spiker Mohammed Anan, who had little playing time in their previous games. He took to the court for the injured Ebrahim and delivered mightily, scoring a game-high 28 points.
“I told Mohammed I have full confidence in him – Ali was playing really well so I couldn’t take him out of the court, but Mohammed got his chance to prove what he is capable of, and he did,” said Josserand. “Mohammed had 85 per cent efficiency in spike tonight – this is tremendous at the international level.
“But it’s really everybody on the team – they are always training and pushing. I knew that when we needed any one, they would be there.”
In the third set, the nationals took a commanding 19-9 lead on a double block by Naser Anan and Abbas Al Khabbaz, and then a Mohammed Anan smash gave them the 2-1 edge.
Pakistan then kept things close midway through the fourth at 12-13, but Bahrain went on a game-changing surge, and a brilliant play at the net by Naser Anan put them firmly in control at 18-14. The Bahrainis were rolling at this point and were not to be denied, and Alafyah provided their last two points, including the title-winning block on Jehan.
“We were leading five points in the first set but we lost, and we could have gone down – but the players reacted and then we killed them in the third and fourth sets,” said Josserand. “I am really so proud of this team and they deserve this title.”
Yaqoob added 20 points for Bahrain in the win while Naser Anan had nine and middle blocker Hasan Al Warqaa seven.
Pakistan’s Usman Faryad Ali was their top scorer with 15, while Jehan chipped in with 11.
In Qatar’s win, they were the aggressors throughout the match, including in the third set when they fought back from an early deficit to secure their sweep.
Abunabot had 12 points to pace the victors, while outside hitter Raimi Wadidie added 11. Youssef Oughlaf, also an outside hitter, and middle blocker Papemaguette Diagne contributed nine points apiece.
“We wanted to take this cup, but we know it is not easy to always repeat what you did before, so we talked with the guys and said we had to get value from this competition,” said Qatar head coach Soto Camilo Andres from Argentina.
Opposite spiker Donghyeok Im had 13 points for the South Koreans, who were the bronze-medallists last year in Bahrain. Outside hitter Subong Heo finished with nine markers.
Also yesterday, the Philippines got their first win of the competition after defeating New Zealand 3-1 (25-16, 23-25, 25-11, 25-22) to secure 10th place overall.
Opposite spiker Steven Charles Rotter had 20 points to lead the Filipinos, while outside hitters Marck Espejo and Louie Ramirez chipped in with 14 apiece.
For the Kiwis, who were the only team not to taste victory in the kingdom, opposite spiker Seth Grant posted 13 points, while outside hitter Andrew Salmon added 12.
The AVC Men’s Volleyball Nations Cup 2025 was organised by the BVA in cooperation with the AVC and Volleyball World.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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