BASKETBALL – BAHRAIN’S senior men’s basketball national team are set for a tough four-game schedule – to be played across five days – in the first round of pre-qualifiers for the Fiba Asia Cup 2029.
Fiba Asia, the continental body of the International Basketball Federation (Fiba), released yesterday the schedule for the tournament, to be held from August 26 to 31.
The Bahrainis are part of an 18-nation field – 10 from West Asia, seven from East Asia, and Fiji from Oceania – that has been divided into four groups in this stage of pre-qualification.
The nationals, coached by Greek tactician Georgios Vovoras, are in Group A, to be hosted by Dubai, the UAE, and which also includes Oman, Nepal, Kuwait, and the host Emiratis.
Bahrain begin their campaign on August 27 against their Omani counterparts, and then take on the UAE the following day. August 29 will be a rest day for all teams, after which the Bahrainis will face Nepal on August 30. They conclude this round against Kuwait on August 31.
Group B, to be hosted by Atyrau, Kazakhstsan, features the home side Kazakhs, Palestine, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, and Kyrgyzstan. Group C, to be held in Seremban, Malaysia, features Indonesia, Hong Kong, and hosts Malaysia; while Group D will be held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, which will feature Thailand, Vietnam, Fiji, and the host Mongolians.
Only the top three squads from each pool following a single round-robin will advance to the second round of the pre-qualifiers, scheduled from November 23 to December 1 at yet-to-be-determined host venues.
That 12-nation field will then be divided into two groups of six, and after another round-robin, the top four teams in each will make it through to the Fiba Asia Cup 2029 qualifiers, which will feature a total of 24 teams. They will be vying for only 16 berths in the final tournament in 2029.
Games in these qualifiers will be played over three windows in November of 2027 and in February and November of 2028.
Bahrain have qualified for nine of the past editions of the Fiba Asia Cup, which has been played 31 times. The national team’s last participation was in 2022, when it was held in Jakarta, Indonesia, where they ranked 13th overall amongst the 16 participating countries.
Aside from the Fiba Asia Cup 2029 pre-qualifiers, Bahrain’s senior men’s squad will also be taking to the hardwood in another major continental event later this year – the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, from September 19 to October 4.
The nationals were also supposed to compete in the fourth GCC Games later this month, and had already begun training for the event under Vovoras, but the men’s basketball tournament was scrapped due to the reduced field of only three participating nations.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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