Oman edge Saudi Arabia for second win at Arab volleyball

MUSCAT, OCT 8

Oman’s men’s national volleyball team maintained their winning start to the 24th Arab Men’s Volleyball Championship with a hard-fought 3-2 victory over Saudi Arabia at the Arena Hall in Amman on Wednesday.

Oman prevailed 21-25, 25-17, 25-17, 14-25 and 15-8, overcoming an opening-set defeat before holding off a Saudi comeback to secure their second successive victory.

The result followed Oman’s 3-1 win over Algeria in their opening match, giving Tunisian head coach Nizar Chekili’s side two victories from their first two fixtures in the six-team competition.

Saudi Arabia took the early advantage by winning the first set 25-21, leaving Oman needing a response to prevent their opponents from extending the lead.

Oman answered with a 25-17 victory in the second set to level the match. They repeated that score in the third, turning a one-set deficit into a 2-1 advantage and moving within one set of completing the win.

An Oman player makes a smash against Saudi Arabia in Amman.

Saudi Arabia, however, produced a strong response in the fourth. Their 25-14 success was the widest margin of the encounter and brought the teams level again, forcing the match into a deciding fifth set.

Oman recovered from that setback to win the decider 15-8. The seven-point margin completed a match in which both sides had taken the lead, with Oman eventually securing the victory after five sets.

The win provided another encouraging result following the opening success against Algeria. In that encounter, Oman won 25-21, 23-25, 28-26 and 25-19, with a closely contested third set helping them regain the advantage before completing the match in four sets.

TWO VICTORIES

The two victories give Oman a positive start to a championship in which every result contributes directly to the final standings.

Oman, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Kuwait, Bahrain and hosts Jordan compete under a single round-robin format. Each team plays five matches, with the top-ranked side claiming the title and the second- and third-placed teams receiving silver and bronze respectively.

Oman next face Kuwait on Friday, October 9, before meeting hosts Jordan on Sunday, October 11. They conclude their campaign against Bahrain on Wednesday, October 14.