Iran revived their Round of 16 hopes with a first win, but coach Roberto Piazza demands a sense of urgency in their pool finale against the Philippines at the 2025 FIVB Men’s World Championship.
Iran’s backs were against the wall for a moment before fighting back hard.
Down a set and facing elimination pressure, the Iranians clawed their way back to beat Tunisia 23-25, 25-20, 25-23 to pump life back to their Round of 16 hopes in the 2025 FIVB Men’s World Championship.
[ALSO READ: FIVB: Iran keeps Round of 16 hopes alive with win vs. Tunisia in World Championship]
But for head coach Roberto Piazza, though, the win was only a small step.
“I already told the guys on the court immediately that we have to take another step,” Piazza said. “What we’ve done now is not enough, even with three points.”
But the win --- a bounce back one coming off a frustrating loss to Egypt in the opener --- couldn't have arrived at a perfect time.
At 1-1, Iran is now tied with Tunisia, while Egypt tops the pool at 1-0. The Philippines remain the only winless team.
“We were not in a perfect mood two days ago. Our mind is so stressful and we were really under pressure,” Piazza said.
He added: “From the second set, we changed our mindset a little bit, and I think the team started to play a little bit better.”
Poriya Khanzadeh powered Iran with 21 points, while captain Morteza Sharifi provided 18 and five of the team’s 10 aces.
Ali Hajipour and Mohammad Valizadeh chipped in 14 and 12, respectively.
Iran will now face the Philippines in a high-stakes showdown that could decide their Round of 16 fate.
Tunisia, on the other hand, leaned on Oussama Ben Romdhane and Ali Bongui with 14 points each in a losing effort as Ahmed Kadhi added 10.
The loss denied the team an outright berth in the knockout stage and put them in a tight race with Iran and Egypt, their final pool opponent Thursday, Sept. 18, at 1:30 p.m.
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Pao Ambat earned his journalism degree from Cavite State University in 2022.
Passionate about sports from a young age, he primarily covers the NBA for One Sports, while also assisting in reporting on the PVL, PBA, UAAP, and other leagues.