Lahore (Web Desk): Pakistan volleyball team on Sunday lose to Qatar in quarter-final match of Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou, China.
In this quarter final clash, the 51st-ranked Pakistan team was against the 17th-ranked Qatari team and lose with 3-1.
In initial stages, Pakistan display strong performance, at one point, Pakistan held a five-point lead, but Qatar made a comeback with 20-15 and 24-22 to snatch the first set from Pakistan. However, Qatar was unable to maintain their momentum as Pakistan dominated Qatar in third set.
Unfortunately Pakistan couldn’t keep up with their momentum in the fourth set as Qatar didn't leave any room for a comeback and snatched the victory. The final score of match stood at 24-26, 19-25, 25-23, and 18-25.
With this loss in the quarter-finals, Pakistan team will now have to face India in a match on Tuesday, to compete for the fifth position in the tournament.
It is pertinent to mention that the Men in Green beat the favorites South Korea with 3-0 in a thrilling match to reach the quarter-final.
Pakistan also paved their place in the top six teams with their win over South Korea.
Earlier, Pakistan topped in its group (B) with remarkable wins over Chinese Taipei and Mongolia sides.
This was the first time since the 1994 Asian Games that Pakistani side has made their place in the top six teams in volleyball.
In the last Asian Games held in Indonesia in 2018, Pakistan maintained to finish at eighth.
Pakistan’s biggest achievement before that in the Asian Games volleyball history is their third-place finish in the 1962 Jakarta Asian Games.
Pakistan squad:
Abdul Zaheer, Hamid Yazman, Farooq Haider, Murad Khan, Murad Jehan, Mohammad Hammad, Musawar Khan, Nasir Ali, Usman Faryad Ali, Mubashar Raza (captain), Mohammad Kashif Naved, Afaq Khan; Officials: Issanaye Ramires Ferraz (coach), Naseer Ahmed, Ihsan Iqbal, Armin Golkari (video analyst), Lucas Ferreira Rodrigues (trainer), Saeed Ahmed Khan (manager).
