Netherlands Triumphs Over Qatar in FIVB Men’s Volleyball Opener

The Netherlands began their FIVB Men’s Volleyball Championship journey with a hard-fought 3-1 victory over Qatar at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City. The scores were 25-18, 25-23, 26-28, 25-23 in favor of the Dutch team during their preliminary round clash on Saturday.

Michiel Ahyi led the Dutch charge, tallying 20 points through a combination of 14 successful attacks, three blocks, and three aces. Tom Koops contributed 17 points, while Bennie Tuinstra added 15.

The Netherlands dominated the first set with relative ease, but the second set saw a more competitive battle as they narrowly edged Qatar 25-23. Qatar showed resilience in the third set, leading by three points late at 19-16 after a service error by Dutch player Nimir Abdel-Aziz Plak. However, the Dutch fought back, leveling the score at 19-all with consecutive service aces from Ahyi.

This ignited a closely contested exchange between both teams, which extended into extra points. The set was eventually claimed by Qatar, 28-26, following a pivotal block by Youssef Oughlaf and an attacking mistake from Ahyi.

In the fourth set, the Netherlands regained control by building an early five-point lead at 20-15, capitalizing on an error from Qatar’s Nikola Vasic. Despite a 7-3 scoring run by Qatar that narrowed the gap to 23-22, a service error by Renan Ribeiro provided the Dutch with match point. Qatar’s Pape kept his team alive momentarily, but Koops sealed the victory with a decisive attack.

Additional contributions for the Netherlands came from Plak, who scored 13 points, and Cornelis Van der Ent, who added eight points, reinforcing their position as Group B leaders. Oughlaf led Qatar with 17 points, while his teammates Ribeiro and Vasic finished with 11 points each.

The win marked a strong start for the Netherlands as they look to advance in the championship.