NAGOYA, Japan, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- Iran beat host Japan 3-1 to defend its men's volleyball title at the Asian Games on Saturday, while Pakistan claimed its first medal in the event in 64 years.
Iran prevailed 28-26, 19-25, 25-21, 26-24 to secure its fourth consecutive Asian Games gold medal.
The defending champion edged a closely contested opening set before Japan responded with improved blocking to take the second and level the match.
Iran regained control with an efficient attacking display in the third set before the teams traded points throughout a tight fourth. Iran eventually prevailed 26-24 to seal the victory.
Iran opposite Amin Esmaeilnezhad scored a team-high 22 points, with two of his teammates also reaching double figures. Japan outside hitter Tatsunori Otsuka led all scorers with 24 points.
Otsuka thanked the home fans for their support but expressed frustration at falling short of the title.
"So many people gave us a push from behind. I wanted to repay them with the result, but we couldn't do that, so I feel frustrated," he said. "Not a single person gave up. We kept fighting until the very end."
Otsuka said he was happy to have competed at the Asian Games despite the demanding schedule.
"It was a tough schedule, but I'm glad I took part in this tournament," he said.
Earlier Saturday, Pakistan swept China 25-18, 25-16, 25-18 to claim the bronze medal, its first Asian Games men's volleyball medal since taking bronze at Jakarta in 1962.
After the opening set was tied at 14-14, Pakistan pulled away with a combination of powerful attacks and blocks. It carried that momentum into the second set, quickly establishing a lead of more than five points before closing it out 25-16.
China attempted to respond in the third, but Pakistan maintained control to complete the straight-sets victory.
Pakistan recorded a 64% success rate in attack and 37% in blocking, compared with China's 39% and 13%, respectively.
The tournament also marked Pakistan's first appearance in the Asian Games semifinals since its bronze-medal campaign in 1962.
China coach Vital Heynen said he was satisfied with his team's overall performance despite missing out on a medal.
"People often say the Chinese team lacks fighting spirit. But look at our games: we were pushed hard against Chinese Taipei, yet we fought back and won. We had a tough battle against South Korea and came back to win that one too," Heynen said.
"Against Japan, we also fought our way back into the match, even though we ended up losing. I think our competitive mindset was really good throughout." ■
