Qatar down Vietnam in thriller to reach Nations Cup semi-finals

Doha, Qatar: Defending champions Qatar fought back from a set down to defeat Vietnam 3 2 and book their place in the semi finals of the 2025 AVC Men s...

Doha, Qatar: Defending champions Qatar fought back from a set down to defeat Vietnam 3-2 and book their place in the semi-finals of the 2025 AVC Men’s Volleyball Nations Cup at Isa Bin Rashid Hall in Manama, Bahrain, yesterday.

Qatar, the tournament’s top seeds who had topped their group with a win over Australia, were stunned by Vietnam 31-29 in an absorbing first set before bouncing back to level the match with a 25-21 win in the second set.

The Camilo Soto-coached side then claimed the third set 25-15 with relative ease, but Vietnam forced a decider by taking the fourth set 25-22.

The title holders held their nerve in the final set, winning it 15-12 to keep their title defence alive.

Youssef Oughlaf and Renan Ribeiro produced outstanding performances for Qatar, scoring 22 and 21 points respectively.