Iran junor v-ballers ace clash of titans

Coasting to their fifth Asian U20 title, Iran junior volleyballers give China no quarter in the 17th Asian U20 Men’s Volleyball Championships final.

The Saturday clash in the Bahraini capital Manama marked a straight-set win (25-19, 25-18, 25-19) for Iran, who conceded only the first five points to the Chinese.

Rahman Taghizadeh’s cast-iron arms blocked the sixth Chinese attack in the first set, establishing the victorious trend, which followed through to the end. The star managed to shine like diamond throughout the rest of the confrontation.

“I promised you before that at the end of the competition it must be the best volleyball that wins,” said Iran coach Farhad Nafarzadeh.

“They worked very hard for this, working, working, working, step-by-step. Today the players showed they were one team and they were the best in the competition.”

“In 2007 I was with the Iran youth team when we won the gold medal, and I hope next year we can repeat history and win another gold medal,” he noted.

On Friday, Iran advanced to the finals after defeating Bahrain 3-1 (25-14, 21-25, 26-24 and 25-15).

China also cruised its way into the gold medal match following a competitive four-set game against South Korean opponents.

HN/NN