Al Arabi players celebrate after scoring a point against Yan Chai during the SMM 2017 Asian Men’s Club Volleyball Championship at the Ninh Binh Gymnasium in Vietnam yesterday.
Ninh Binh, Vietnam: Qatar's Al Arabi Sports Club sealed their second win at the SMM 2017 Asian Men’s Club Volleyball Championship at the Ninh Binh Gymnasium in Vietnam after thrashing Yan Chai Club from Hong Kong in a one-sided Pool C tussle 25-14, 25-15, 25-19 yesterday.
Al Arabi's Gyorgy Grozer, who was substituted to play in the third set, was the top scorer for the Qatari side with nine points, while Salvador Hidalgo Oliva added eight points. Lee Man Sing and Lam Chun Kit scored nine and four points respectively for Yan Chai.
“It was quite a difficult match. Yan Chai is a young team with full potential. I hope they can learn something from today’s match. I respect them. I wish them a good future,” said the star of the day Grozer, who last year played in Shanghai Golden Age Club of China to claim the fourth place at the previous edition.
“The tournament this year is a little bit harder than last year as there are many strong teams. It will be more difficult to win this tournament, but we will play our best to win one at a time and fight for the title,” he added.
Al Arabi will next take on Altay VC from Kazakhstan today and the result of the clash will decide the Pool C winners. Both teams have already claimed two straight wins in the pool to make the cut for the round of the last eight teams.
Earlier, China’s Beijing Baic Motor survived a scare to beat Thailand’s Air Force VC in a hard-fought five-set thriller 25-18, 25-21, 23-25, 16-25, 15-12 at the same venue.
With two straight wins in Pool D, Beijing Baic Motor, which thrashed Maldivian Sports and Recreation Club in straight sets the previous day, have already clinched a berth to the round of the last eight teams.
The 2017 AVC Men’s Club Volleyball Championship sees the participation of 13 national teams and national champion clubs from countries across Asia.
