Nikola Jovovic (R) of Serbia competes against Poriya Hossein Khanzadeh Firouzjah of Iran during the round of 16 match between Serbia and Iran at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, on September 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
MANILA, Sept. 23 (Xinhua) -- Iran defended the Asian glory in the last 16 of the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship here on Tuesday, coming back twice to defeat Serbia 3-2 and setting up a quarterfinal clash against Czechia, who dominated Tunisia in straight sets.
In the two most recent editions of the Volleyball Nations League, Serbia and Iran each secured one victory.
Serbia opened the match with 25-23, before Iran got back on level terms 25-19. Although the Serbians pushed hard to restore the lead in the following set with 26-24, its opponent showed tenacity to drag the game into after a 25-22 win.
In the decisive fifth set, Iran surged ahead with a 4-1 run and maintained the lead to clinch a 15-9 victory.
Iran's effective offense yielded 67 spike kills compared to Serbia's 60, which was crucial to the outcome. Iran also outperformed in serving, with a 5-4 advantage in aces, and in precision, with Serbia committing 27 unforced errors to Iran's 24.
"The game was so tough, Serbia did a great job and pushed until the end, but we were here to win," Iran captain Morteza Sharifi told VBTV. "I would like to thank all the players, because with their help I was able to show a good performance. We were together and believed that we could win this match."
Elsewhere, the Czech Republic qualified for the quarterfinals for the first time in its history. the Czech Republic outplayed Tunisia in the first set and maintained control, extending its dominance with a seven-point lead in the second set.
Although Tunisia opened the third set with a 4-0 run and built a seven-point lead, Jan Galabov inspired a formidable comeback, leading the Czech Republic to a 25-19, 25-18, 25-23 victory.
The Czech Republic outplayed Tunisia in all three scoring elements - by 42-32 in spike kills, by 8-4 in serving aces and by 4-2 in kill blocks.
"I think we are currently writing Czech volleyball's history. We can say that dreams come true. We made our pretty hard way to the quarterfinals, and we can be really proud of ourselves, but we are not finished yet. There are still more games ahead of us. I think we will continue to show the same performance," Galabov told VBTV. ■
Players of Iran celebrate after scoring a point during the round of 16 match between Serbia and Iran at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, on September 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Morteza Sharifi of Iran competes during the round of 16 match between Serbia and Iran at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, on September 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Drazen Luburic (R) of Serbia competes during the round of 16 match between Serbia and Iran at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, on September 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Ali Hajipour MoghadDam FaroUji of Iran competes during the round of 16 match between Serbia and Iran at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, on September 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Morteza Sharifi (L) of Iran competes during the round of 16 match between Serbia and Iran at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, on September 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Drazen Luburic (R) of Serbia competes during the round of 16 match between Serbia and Iran at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, on September 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Drazen Luburic (R) of Serbia competes during the round of 16 match between Serbia and Iran at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, on September 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Ali Bongui (L) of Tunisia competes during the round of 16 match between the Czech Republic and Tunisia at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, Sept. 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Lukas Vasina (R) of the Czech Republic competes during the round of 16 match between the Czech Republic and Tunisia at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, Sept. 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Mohamed Ridene (L) and Elyes Karamosli (R) of Tunisia compete during the round of 16 match between the Czech Republic and Tunisia at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, Sept. 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Players of Tunisia celebrate scoring during the round of 16 match between the Czech Republic and Tunisia at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, Sept. 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Khaled Ben Slimene (R) of Tunisia competes during the round of 16 match between the Czech Republic and Tunisia at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, Sept. 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Jan Galabov (R) of the Czech Republic competes during the round of 16 match between the Czech Republic and Tunisia at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, Sept. 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Patrik Indra (back) of the Czech Republic competes during the round of 16 match between the Czech Republic and Tunisia at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, Sept. 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Jan Galabov (top) of the Czech Republic competes during the round of 16 match between the Czech Republic and Tunisia at the FIVB Men's World Championship 2025 in Pasay City, the Philippines, Sept. 23, 2025. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
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